Cage of Shadows
by Nokito-chan
Summary: Lies, secrets and betrayal divided them but will they realize their only hope lies in forgiveness? NejiTen ShikaTema. Rated M - don't like, don't read. Please review!
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: I do NOT own Naruto **__**(See profile for full disclaimer)**_

_**Prologue: Three years ago**_

A soft knock on the terrace door brought Tenten out of her reverie. _Neji. _She recognized his familiar silhouette through the glass. _Oh god, how do I tell him? _Trying to ignore the fluttering in her stomach, she crossed her bedroom to let him in. _You just have to tell him, that's all, _she thought, _he'll be okay. He'll make it okay. _She opened the door, forcing a smile onto her lips, but before she could step back to let him through, he had reached out and pulled her through the door.

The rough stone of the wall was digging into her back. Her heart beat erratically as he came closer and closer. Involuntarily she gasped as his warm body pressed her into the wall, his lips capturing hers in a searing kiss. The world spun on its axis and everything faded away, there was only him. Then the warm pressure was gone from her mouth. She slowly opened her eyes, still slightly shocked by his unexpected behaviour. His forehead leaning against hers, his silky hair blowing around them both, he held her close for a moment longer before leaning back to look into her eyes. He looked slightly wild, emotional, out of control … completely unlike his usual stoic self. Tenten eyed him apprehensively, then gathered her courage to ask, "What's wrong?"

"I … I couldn't just leave. Not without saying goodbye. Not without asking you, even though I have no right –"

"But where are you going?" she interrupted, frustrated that her voice was more a breathy sigh than the forceful question she'd intended.

"It's better if you don't know. Just telling you goodbye is all the trouble I intend to get you into. They will pry and they will probe and eventually you will be in an intolerable position. I cannot allow that to happen." Years of unthinking trust had her instinctively nodding in agreement.

"Why do you have to go?" she whispered, horrified at the broken sound of her voice.  
"I just have to. Trust me," his voice was pleading, as he tilted her chin up to look into her eyes.  
"Are you coming back?"  
"I promise. I have no right to ask this but wait for me."  
"Forever." A clatter on the street below drew his attention. "I have to go. I don't want to be seen here." With a last hard kiss he pushed her away, turning to disappear into the darkness.

Frantically she caught hold of his arm, "Wait, Neji. I have to tell you-"

But his arm slipped through her grasp like smoke and his disembodied voice drifted through the night.

"I'll come back for you."

Then he was gone. How long she'd stayed like that, staring into the darkness, she didn't know. She only knew blind panic. _Get a hold of yourself, Tenten. You have to be strong. He will come back. He promised. You only have to be strong enough to wait._

Despair clouded her thinking as her legs gave out and she sank slowly to the ground. He was gone, really gone. Placing her hands protectively over her stomach, she fought against the fear. At last, trembling, she stood, and turned to go back inside. _It'll be all right. We'll be all right. I'll take care of you. You still have me. We'll wait together._

_**Chapter 1**_

Tenten jerked awake, the sound of a whispered promise made so long ago echoing down through the years. Breathing deeply to calm the frantic beating of her heart, she stared blankly at the ceiling. _You lied Hyuuga Neji, _she thought bitterly, _after all these years I cannot believe that you'd ever intended to come back home. What are you up to? More importantly, why did you have to leave me behind to do it? Not that I was much better at keeping any of my promises,_ she admitted to herself out of an innate sense of fair play.

Fighting against the memories that threatened to overwhelm her, she shook her head violently from side to side. And screamed when a figure rose from the bed beside her.  
"Tenten! Are you okay? What is it? It's a dream, just a dream" Shikamaru pulled her into his arms, stroking soothing circles onto her back. _God, I completely forgot that he's here. _Tenten mentally gave herself a shake before pulling away from him.

"I'm fine, don't worry," she smiled gently cupping his cheek with her palm.  
"Wow, you nearly gave me a heart attack," Shikamaru leaned back into the pillows, placing a bent arm over his eyes. "And a heart attack at 25 would definitely have been troublesome."

Tenten rolled her eyes, wondering for the umpteenth time how on earth they had managed to wind up like this.

_Oh wait, that's right he got dumped and I got … whatever the hell it was that I got. _Looking at Shikamaru through her lashes she wondered what he must think of her, always content to allow his physical presence in her life but utterly unable to let him past any emotional barriers.

Though he'd talked to her about the events that had led him here, she'd never really opened up about what had driven her to such a strange situation. Still surveying him carefully from beneath lowered lashes her thoughts turned to the past…

_Two years ago_

Unable to sleep she had gone for a walk and wound up on a rooftop that provided an excellent view of the stars along with an illusion of total isolation. Only the spot had already been occupied. For some reason it had been entirely natural to plop down next to him and sit in silence. For hours they'd stayed like that, not speaking, and yet comforted by the other's presence.

Finally, as dawn had begun to brush the sky, Shikamaru had started to talk and sensing that he needed to get it all out, she'd listened in silence. "Temari's getting married today. To the Wind Country's feudal lord. An arranged marriage. I guess she really would do anything for her village," his laugh had been tainted with bitterness.

"She told me last week. Came all the way to Konoha because she wanted to _explain_. How the hell do you explain something like that? "Hi, honey, how are you? I missed you. Oh, and by the way, I'm marrying someone else next week, but don't worry I don't love him or anything, it's just politics!" he'd mimicked Temari's voice, anger in every line of his body. But Tenten could see the hurt beneath the anger and she'd done what came naturally, she'd simply put her arms around him and held him.

Before long the rooftop sessions had become a nightly occurrence. At first they'd only sat in silence, sometimes sharing a thought, drawing comfort from the fact that there was someone else who really understood the feeling of abandonment. Tenten had never opened up the way Shikamaru had but that had been all right, too. How he had known that she was a kindred spirit she'd never asked but it hadn't exactly been a secret that she had been the only one to warrant a goodbye from Neji. It wasn't a hard conclusion to draw, especially for the resident genius.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it," he'd told her one night. "What do you mean?" she'd asked warily.

"I'm not prying or anything, I just wanted you to know that if you want to talk, or if you don't, whatever, is fine.

Don't feel that because I dumped my troubles on you that you have to tell me anything. Whatever your problems, that's your business." She'd been so surprised, so sure that he was going to pressure her for answers - everyone else did at every opportunity.  
"Thank you," she'd whispered. He hadn't replied, but he'd taken her hand and pulled her back into their companionable silence.

Weeks passed and their meetings had begun to take on a ritual feel, unless there were missions to attend to, or horrifically bad storms, they would meet on the rooftop. One stormy night had found her on the roof anyway.

It had been the one year anniversary of Neji's departure and the horrifying turn her life had taken in the months since had preyed on her mind incessantly, she'd tried everything to forget but nothing had helped.

Eventually she'd gone to the only place where she'd found some peace in the last months. She hadn't been there very long when Shikamaru had joined her, braving the elements to ask whether she was suicidal now. She'd burst into hysterical laughter and before she'd known what was happening the laughter had turned to tears. She'd sobbed her heart out on his shoulder. Tenten, who never cried. For the first time since the night that Neji had left she had let her emotions have a completely free rein.

In between the sobs, she'd shared some of her story. How she worried, when would he come back? Was he dead? But their last meeting, and it's ramifications that she could not share. Shikamaru had listened quietly and when she was done raging and crying with the storm, he'd picked her exhausted form up, as if she were a child, and taken her to his apartment.

She'd barely even noticed where they were going, had allowed him to take off her wet clothes – some part of her registering his averted eyes with amusement – she'd been as unresisting as a ragdoll when he'd wrapped her in something warm and placed her in his bed. She'd been sunk into a kind of stupor, as if after all the months of suppressing her memories, they had broken free and overwhelmed her completely. He'd let her be. But somewhere in the middle of the night, his warmth had made her aware of just how cold she was.

His body beside hers had radiated heat and instinctively she'd moved closer, wanting to be warm. He had stiffened slightly in surprise, so she'd known he was still awake and slowly his arms had come around her, drawing her close. With a soft sigh she'd settled into the circle of his arms, burying her face in his neck and for the first time since that horrible night she'd felt … safe. As she'd nestled into him her lips had brushed the smooth column of his throat. And she'd begun wondering whether he tasted as good as he smelled.

Without any clear idea of what she was doing, her lips had begun exploring his skin. His breath had hissed from his chest, but he hadn't pulled away. One of his hands had skimmed down the curve of her body, coming to rest on her hip, pulling her closer. When her tongue had snaked out to trace the shell of his ear, he'd gasped, his hand tightening on her hip. He had allowed her to satisfy her curiosity, let her continue with her exploration, but she'd been aware of the rigidity of his body, as if he held himself firmly in check.

She'd wondered if his skin was this silky and soft all over, and her hands had trailed down his chest, her fingers searching for the hem of his shirt, slipping under the fabric and tracing the defined muscles of his stomach, enjoying the shudders that ran through him at her light touch. She'd lost herself in the feel of his skin, his hands on her hips, had been able to forget who she was.

Then he'd groaned almost helplessly and rolled over so she came to rest beneath his hard body. Distantly she'd been aware that this was _Shikamaru_ but that rational part of her brain had been swiftly silenced when his mouth had descended to hers_. _His lips had been so gentle, yet insistent, his tongue tracing the line of her lips, requesting entrance. Barely aware of anything besides the feel of his mouth on hers, the sane part of her had warned that she was yielding to much more than a simple kiss, yet she'd opened her mouth and when his tongue had touched hers and something exploded between them, she'd known that she wanted, no, _needed_ this. Needed to feel wanted, needed the comfort that his heat brought.

Firmly pushing all thoughts of Neji away she'd given herself up to the moment – and to Shikamaru's unrelenting hands and warm mouth. And she'd discovered that he could banish even the darkest thoughts to the hidden depths of her soul. And so their relationship had begun. But there was no awkwardness, no sense of owing. Both knew that the other's heart was far away. This was all either of them had left. Before long they'd fallen into a pattern that had lasted nearly two years now.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: I noticed that my spacing and formatting got **__** messed up on the previous chapters … sorry about that, I hope it works this time! Ps. Thanks for the reviews!**_

_**Disclaimer: Still own nothing … *sobs***_

_**Chapter 2**_

Blinking herself back to the present, Tenten wondered again at how it had just seemed so natural to keep this a secret. _Does that mean we both still secretly hope? _She wondered despairingly. _Is that why I'm suddenly having these dreams again? Remembering things I'd much rather forget?_

Refusing to give in to the fears swirling in her heart, she focused on the man next to her. He'd fallen asleep again while she'd been caught up in her memories.  
"Unbelievable" she whispered, smiling nonetheless.

Completely relaxed, as he was now, he looked so untroubled. His mouth was softened in a slight smile, his shoulder-length brown hair spread on the pillow. When his hair was down, it created a perfect foil for the planes of his face, emphasizing the deep, dark pools of his eyes. Critically she observed him. He was certainly not unfortunate-looking by any stretch of imagination. Yet he wasn't classically handsome, either. It was more that he possessed an inherent sensuality that manifested in all his movements, she decided finally. His laziness only added to the effect. Although, by now, she knew that he wasn't nearly as lazy as he pretended to be. It had just somehow become his defining characteristic. So much a part of him, that even Shikamaru had a hard time deciding whether he was really lazy or not. Her eyes drifted down over his shoulders, the sculpted muscles of his chest. Yes, most girls would kill to be in her place, she knew that. _Then why is it that he can't really touch me? Not emotionally, anyway._

An image of long, dark hair and piercing eyes drifted through her mind, instantly tattooing itself to the back of her eyelids. _Neji. _Sighing, she gave in to the inevitable, and for the first time in weeks she allowed herself to dwell on the image of the man she'd been unable to leave in the past, no matter how good-looking or caring Shikamaru was.

She examined the image minutely, trying to pinpoint what it was that set him apart from all the other men she knew. His waist-length, silky hair was a deep rich brown, making her fingers itch to touch it. His pale skin and dark hair created a startling contrast to his light, lavender eyes. His eyes were definitely his most arresting feature, the physical manifestation of the Hyuuga bloodline limit, the Byakugan.

But merely focusing on his good looks wasn't getting her anywhere in the analysis of what made him so much more appealing than Shikamaru, or any of the other handsome shinobi she came into contact with daily. Granted, none of them had Neji's presence, his elegance, and few had his skill, he was the Hyuuga prodigy after all, but still … if physical attraction was the only factor she would've been distracted by any other pretty face. No, it was something that was purely Neji. That part of him that she was sure only she'd ever seen. Most people found his gaze much too disconcerting, but if she was honest with herself, it was one of the traits that appealed to her the most – the way he always seemed to see into her soul.

His smile, his graceful movements … Pain shot through her and she forcibly banished the memories, admitting defeat. Whatever it was that made Neji special could not be defined, it was some sort of mystical attribute that defied logic. Taking a deep breath she lay back down, determined to get some sleep, but when dawn painted the sky a deep rose, she was still forcing herself to focus only on Shikamaru's even breaths.

***

"We need to talk," Shikamaru caught up with Tenten just as she left the Hokage's office after handing in the report on her previous mission.  
"Sure." She waited, looking up at him expectantly.  
"No, not here. Later. I'll drop by as soon as the Hokage's done with me for the day."  
"Okay. Are you helping with strategizing again?" Tenten looked at him curiously.  
"It's troublesome but someone has to stop the village from making idiotic moves on an international scale."

He sighed melodramatically.  
"Yeah right! Like you're not enjoying every second," Tenten laughed, hitting him lightly on the chest. He rubbed the spot in mock pain. "Well, it beats having to run around the country getting into trouble," he admitted, "so, I'll see you later. Don't worry about dinner, I'll get some ramen or something."

_Now what in the world is he so serious about?_ Tenten wondered as she stared at his retreating back.  
Neither of them noticed the figure in the shadows of the entrance to the Hokage's mansion, listening closely to their discussion.  
***

_Move. You have to move. _Temari tried to force her limbs into action. _He'll see you any second, _she screamed inwardly as she stood frozen in the shadows of the doorway. She shrank back as he neared her, but miraculously he passed without seeing her. Sinking to the floor she tried to make sense of what she'd just witnessed.

_Shika and … Tenten? _She asked herself in disbelief. It was the only explanation that made sense. The careless intimacy between the two definitely hadn't developed out of a work relationship. They had discussed dinner so casually… as if they'd been eating it together for years.

It was her first trip to Konoha in two years, she'd thought she was ready but, to be honest, she hadn't expected to have to deal with Shikamaru in a relationship with someone else. Jealousy raged through her as she watched the retreating kunoichi. Yes, she was certainly pretty, Temari acknowledged sourly. With her dark hair up in cutesy panda buns, her bangs framing her heart-shaped face, emphasizing her dark chocolate eyes and her lithe, slim form living up to the promise of her pretty face. She was definitely tough, much like Temari herself.

_Ugh_. Without reaching a conscious decision, Temari left her place in the shadows and followed the Konoha kunoichi. She'd only gone halfway down the street when reason overpowered the unthinking jealousy.

_You can't just run up to her and demand answers. After all it's not like it's any of your business what Shikamaru does in his private life. You're married, for heaven's sake. _

The last thought was tainted with bitterness, as always. She turned on her heel, quickly heading back to the Hokage's mansion before she did something stupid.

Thoughts swirled madly in her head as she navigated the hallways to the office the Hokage had put aside for the Suna visitors. She never even noticed the object of her thoughts leaning against a doorway.

Shikamaru watched Temari drawing closer, frozen in shock. _She's in Konoha? No one told me she's coming! _Irrational jealousy surged through him as he wondered who her liaison was. Shaking his head to dispel the ridiculous thoughts he deliberately focused on Tenten, but that only made him think of what they would be discussing later. _Women are just too troublesome,_ he sighed to himself. Temari drew level and then she had passed. Despite the thoughts he was unable to stop himself staring after her receding figure. Unable to stop himself from admiring the way the light played on her golden hair. His fingers tingled with the memory of its silkiness and … _damnit! Focus, Nara! Look at yourself, skulking around like you're afraid of her! It's one thing to say that you're Konoha's number one coward and quite another to act like it! _He reacted before he'd properly considered all the consequences.

"Temari" he called after her, a statement more than a greeting. She jerked around in surprise, for some unfathomable reason started blushing and swallowed nearly visibly. But when she replied her voice was steady, "Shikamaru."

_No inflection, _he noted in grudging admiration. _Well, now what? You spoke to her first and with no legitimate reason at that. When's the last time you did anything without thinking it through thoroughly?  
_"When did you arrive? I didn't know we had scheduled another round of diplomatic talks with Suna," he said, latching on to the first thing that entered his head.

She'd recognized the smooth, deep tones of his voice at once, found herself involuntarily turning and responding. Here she stood, fighting for composure, while he leaned indolently against a doorway, looking for all the world as if he was perfectly at ease. _How dared he look so … relaxed, _she seethed inwardly.

"Any particular reason why you should've been informed?" she asked archly, mentally wincing at the bitchy edge to her voice. His eyebrows rose in surprise but no other expression appeared to enlighten her as to what he was thinking.  
"No, there's no particular reason. I merely enquired since I usually serve as Suna's liaison."  
"Under the circumstances, I requested a different liaison. I'm sure you understand" Temari said haughtily, taking refuge in professionalism. _Do not let him see that you're upset!  
_

"Of course. How stupid of me. I won't waste any more of your time, Temari-hime." Despite the polite words, his tone had a biting edge of sarcasm that had Temari wincing involuntarily. Shikamaru gave her a short bow and turned to walk away, not making eye contact again. _No, don't leave yet. Stay … just a little longer… _Temari was surprised by the aching need echoing through the mental plea for a little more time with him.

"Shika … wait. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that". He froze and Temari smiled wryly, yes it was rather shocking – she never apologized, for anything.  
"There's no need to apologize to me, Temari-hime." He said stiffly, never turning.  
"Stop calling me that! I'm no princess! And I'll damn well apologize to you if I feel like it!" her temper flared instantly. _Why has he always been able to make me lose my cool so spectacularly with barely any effort? _

The jealousy, the pain … the entire mess of feelings Shikamaru had always been able to awaken welled up in her again when he turned and said distantly, "I merely meant that I had not taken any offence. So, apology accepted, I guess, if that's what you want. Now, if you do not require my services in any matter, I really should be going."

Before she could think the words poured from her mouth and the venom in her tone surprised no one more than her "Yes, you should. The quicker you finish up here, the quicker you can be with Tenten again, right?" Her hand flew to her mouth but it was too late. The words could not be recalled.

Shikamaru's hands clenched at his sides but his voice was perfectly neutral when he said,

"Clearly you know something I don't. I have no idea what you mean."  
"Don't pretend, Shikamaru, I saw you together."

"I don't know what you think you saw but leave Tenten alone," Shikamaru said, slowly.  
Temari gasped, "Or you'll do what?"  
"Merely making a statement."  
Her bitter laugh broke the short silence that had followed his pronouncement.  
"How cute. Aren't you a proper knight in shining armor? Afraid I'll hurt her? She wasn't much of a challenge years ago in the chuunin exams, if I recall. So perhaps it's just as well that she has you to protect her now!"  
Shikamaru whirled around and Temari rejoiced inwardly despite the anger and the jealousy. She knew that expression, she'd finally gone too far. The fight she had been spoiling for ever since she'd first seen the two of them together finally seemed to be within her grasp.

"Jealous much? Stay away from Tenten. She's a lot stronger than she was back then, you might just get yourself hurt. And it would be extremely troublesome to explain to our respective superiors if you land in the hospital, don't you think?" Shikamaru glared at her.  
"How dare you! Just who do you think you're talking to?" Temari nearly spluttered the words in her outrage.  
"I know you better than anyone, Temari. Or have you forgotten?"  
"It seems you have!"  
"I'm getting tired of this troublesome conversation. If you have something to say to me, then say it. But don't take it out on Tenten. She's nothing to do with you." Shikamaru's eyes tightened as he forced the words out between clenched teeth.  
"You and I both know that she has everything to do with this! How could you, Shika?" Her voice trembled as the fight went out of her, finally she could acknowledge that this was the heart of the matter. How could he love someone else?  
"Excuse me?" Shikamaru's eyebrows rose in disbelief. "How could _I? _How could you! You're _married_ and that's okay, but I have to sit around moping for all eternity? How fair is that, Temari? You have no right to expect anything of me! God, can you even see how twisted that is! I'm done with your power trips. Go play with someone else's emotions, you can't touch mine anymore. If you want to hate Tenten for anything then hate her for that. But I warn you, hurt her in any way and I will become your enemy."

In the moment it took Temari to draw a breath, he'd disappeared into the depths of the building. Feeling eyes on her, Temari gradually became aware that their little spat had generated an audience, who was now staring at her in unabashed curiosity. Lifting her head high, she walked away with as much dignity as she could manage under the circumstances. Finally reaching the office she closed the door and sank to the floor. Her trembling legs could no longer support her. Tears filling her eyes, she stared at nothing. _What have I done? _


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Still own nothing**_

_**Chapter 3**_

Shikamaru entered his office, aware of Kotetsu following just behind him. He walked to the window, staring at the village spread out below with unseeing eyes. Leaning his arms against the glass, fists still clenched, Shikamaru had to fight against the urge to break something. Preferably Temari.

_Damn that troublesome woman. How she's always been able to get beneath my skin like this I'll never be able to understand!_

"Is there anything in particular you need, Kotetsu?" Shikamaru asked tightly when it became apparent that the other man had no intention of leaving._  
_"Feeling better?" Kotetsu inquired archly when Shikamaru pushed away from the window.

"You saw that." Shikamaru stated flatly.  
"Most of the _building_ saw that" Kotetsu grinned briefly. "So you did have a thing with Temari-san years ago."  
"What's it to you?" Shikamaru eyed him suspiciously, Kotetsu grinning like that never boded well.  
"Oh, just a point of interest. Everyone suspected you two had a thing going at the time, but then Temari-san married and no one could ever get anything out of you … but now you've gone and confirmed it in a rather spectacular fashion."  
Kotetsu lowered himself into a chair, still eyeing Shikamaru speculatively.  
"Get to the point."

"So touchy! The point, my friend, is that you've just had a rather public falling out with one of our most important allies' representatives. And aired a lot of private information that I'm sure you would rather have kept hidden."  
Shikamaru sighed as he sank down behind his desk. Running a hand over his face he said,

"I know. Damnit. But the woman just really got to me."

"And now for the million dollar question. How is Tenten going to react to your going public about your relationship?"  
Shikamaru froze and closed his eyes. "Shit."  
"Oh yes, I also rather thought that there's big trouble ahead for you." Kotetsu grinned.  
"You don't sound very surprised," Shikamaru eyed his friend from across the desk.  
"You're not as good at secret relationships as you think you are. It's fairly common knowledge that you and Tenten have been having sleepovers for the last couple of years. The Hokage figured that she knew more about Neji's disappearance than she let on. The surveillance on her wasn't lifted until about a year ago. The news gradually filtered down from ANBU." Kotetsu shrugged.  
Shikamaru groaned and dropped his head onto his desk. "I'm so dead."  
After a moment of silence, in which Shikamaru was frantically wracking his brains for ideas on how to make this right, Kotetsu cleared his throat. "Can I make a suggestion?"  
"Hmmm? What?" Shikamaru asked distractedly, lifting his head off the desk.  
"I'd go and tell Tenten before the gossip has a chance to reach her. I'll cover for you with the Hokage."  
"You're right. There's nothing else for it." Shikamaru stood up, "Thanks. I owe you one."  
Kotetsu laughed. "Don't worry about it. You provided a nice little dramatic scene for my entertainment."  
"You're never going to let me live this down, are you?" Shikamaru smiled wryly.  
"Oh, we're going to have hours of fun …"  
****

Tenten turned at the sound of her name being called. After leaving the Hokage's mansion, she'd decided to do a bit of shopping but it hadn't provided the distraction she'd been hoping for. She kept mulling over what Shikamaru wanted to talk about, and the bad feeling that she had about the looming conversation wouldn't lift.

"Hi, Ino." She'd been so distracted she'd walked right past the Yamanaka flower shop without even noticing.

"Shikamaru's looking for you." Ino eyed her with undisguised interest. "Is everything ok with you two? He looked a bit upset."

Tenten blushed bright red. "I-I'm sorry. What?" she spluttered. "I-we … that is …. What do you mean?"  
Ino looked at her pityingly, "Relax. Shika had a fight with Temari earlier, so it's all out in the open now, you don't have to pretend. I know that you and Shika are … um…. _involved_. And now I can finally say, I'm a bit put out that you didn't confide in your friends! Are you okay?" Ino's tone of disapproval changed to one of concern as Tenten turned several shades of red before settling on chalk white.  
"Shikamaru had a fight with Temari?" she asked with deceptive calm.

Ino looked worried as she replied, "Yes, I wasn't there but I heard about it. Apparently she's fairly jealous of you."  
"And everyone automatically assumed that Shikamaru and I are involved?" Tenten ground the words out.  
"Um, no, that's sort of been common knowledge for a while. But it was definitely confirmed when Shika basically told Temari to stay away from you and she said that she saw you together or something … are you sure you're okay?"  
"I'll kill him" Tenten turned, adding over her shoulder, "The whole village probably knows about this!"  
"Um, yes, I suppose so."

With a growl Tenten started to rush off, just catching Ino's last words.

"Go easy on him. I've gotten kinda attached to him over the years!"

Blood roared furiously in her ears as she sped away from the flower shop. _How could he do this to me? _Tenten wailed inwardly as she made her way unthinkingly back to her apartment, suddenly aware of all the curious stares. _Why are you freaking out about this? It's not as if he's committed a capital offence. You are together, what else would you call exclusively sleeping with the same someone for years? Are you secretly ashamed of him or something?_

_No! _Her instinctive answer to her own thoughts made her feel slightly better about having had such a thought in the first place. _It's just how could he do that without consulting me first? _

_Do you really care? Is this all about a few curious stares? You should be used to that by now. _

Taking a deep breath she halted before her front door, her anger evaporating when the insidious little voice in her head finally whispered the truth. _Or maybe it's just that now everyone knows it feels a lot more like the betrayal it is. _

Shaking herself mentally she pushed the voice away and unlocked the door. Entering her living room she was unsurprised to see Shikamaru waiting for her on the couch. For once he was not reclining into the pillows but sitting on the edge looking uncharacteristically nervous. She felt the anger flaring again. _How dare he put me in this position?_  
Tenten opened her mouth to deliver a stinging tirade but he raised his hands in a gesture that was both pleading and commanding. "Wait. Let me explain. I'm so unbelievably sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen, I swear. I wasn't thinking and that's no excuse, but I don't have a better one." The puppy eyes he turned on her had the anger disappearing again, especially when she saw the genuine regret and apology in his eyes.

Sighing she flopped down next to him. "I know you didn't mean to. That's not the point. And there's no point in punishing you for an honest mistake, either. But you'd better have a good idea for making this go away."

She tacked on the warning just to let him know he wasn't totally forgiven.  
"You're not angry at me?" he asked in disbelief. "Wow, and here I was expecting a kunai through the heart, at the very least." He smiled feebly .Not even bothering to acknowledge his lame attempt at a joke, Tenten frowned at him. "I _was _angry. Until I saw that you'd genuinely not done it on purpose. If you'd used it in an attempt to pay Temari back, then it might've been a different story, but …"

His breath came out in a whoosh as he leaned back next to her, "As for ideas on how to make it better, you'll have to give me a little time, but I am working on it, I promise," he added hastily, holding up his hands in a sign of surrender when Tenten turned to glare at him.

"It's just that at the moment my brain seems to have deserted me. The best I could come up with was pretending mental illness and saying it was all part of my delusion. I think you'll agree that no one would buy that. At this point, I think the best thing, for now, would be to just ignore it. Let the dust settle a bit – no use in giving them even more to gossip about."  
"No, no use," Tenten agreed acerbically. "Of course it would've been so much better if they hadn't had anything to gossip about to begin with…"  
Shikamaru rubbed his eyes and ran an agitated hand through his already messy hair. It had fallen almost completely out of his habitual, spiky ponytail, a sure sign that he was upset. Tenten felt her heart soften even more.

"So, what happened to make you lose all sense of discretion?" she asked, and then continued in a softer tone,

"I only heard that you and Temari had a fight."  
"I-I don't know … I just … lost it. She was there and I wasn't expecting it and then we were fighting and it was like I had no control over anything. I just said the first thing that came to mind. She was the one who was going on about you, said she'd seen us together or something, no idea what she meant but, yeah, I guess I got a little … um… protective and that sort of led to the whole subject and then I outed us" he looked relieved that it was out in the open and some of the flush on his cheeks started to fade while Tenten tried to make sense of the garbled explanation.

After a minute of puzzling over his words, she gave up, knowing how garbled her own emotions were on the subject of Neji. She understood the impossibility of making another understand and, to be quite honest, she wasn't sure that she'd have come off any better had their positions been reversed and she'd been the one confronting her ghosts.  
"I'm sorry," she whispered leaning her head on his shoulder. He looked at her in surprise. "It must've been really hard for you." She elaborated.  
"I'm okay. Mostly I just felt like strangling her. The question is how are _you_?" he looked at her anxiously.  
"I'm fine, Shika, really, I was taken by surprised but given the fact that Ino thought it was common knowledge anyway, I guess there's no real reason to be upset."  
"Yeah, Kotetsu knew, too," Shikamaru agreed gloomily.  
"And really, it's not like it's such a bad thing," she said with forced cheerfulness.  
"Tenten, don't pretend for my sake. I know it's a big deal for you, this was definitely not the way I wanted to go about it." Shikamaru said almost to himself.  
"What do you mean?"

"It's what I was going to talk to you about tonight," Shikamaru admitted looking anywhere but at her.

"I thought maybe we should go public, as a first step. If you wanted." He was still studiously studying the opposite wall.

"I'm … confused," Tenten admitted slowly.  
Shikamaru sighed, "God, you do know how to make me suffer. Okay, I'll come out and say it. I want this to be real. I don't want to miss out on the dreams I've always had just because of … well, you know." He took a deep breath.

"I want it all someday, Ten. Marriage and kids. And I need to know if you're prepared to do that. If this, with us, if it's going that way. If it could ever be serious." He swallowed and finally looked at her. This time Tenten was the one unable to make eye contact.

"I … don't understand. You don't love me," she finally whispered, staring at her hands. _No, please, no. _She squeezed her eyes tightly shut, trying to block out the image of a happy family, trying to keep the inevitable breakdown the image would bring at bay.

"I do love you. Maybe not in the way I love … _loved_ Temari, no. But I do care about you. How can you doubt that after all we've been to each other? You're not just a convenient physical outlet."

"I never thought that. It's just … isn't this why we … how we got here in the first place? Because there wouldn't be any strings?" she stumbled a little over the words, struggling to phrase her thoughts coherently.

"Yeah sure. Maybe at the beginning it was, but it's been years. _Years, _Ten. The strings developed anyway, whatever we thought at the beginning. And to be honest, I want strings. I don't want to have even more regrets at the end of the day. I really think that we could make a good life. But it's your decision, too. "

"What if I didn't want to?" she asked, appalled at how her voice trembled.

"Tenten, look at me," he gently but firmly lifted her chin until he could look into her eyes.

"If you don't want to then fair enough. I would never abandon you like Neji did." He ignored her gasp but allowed her to jerk her head away.

"I'm sorry but it's the truth. Maybe it's time you faced that. But that's beside the point. If you don't want to then you don't. I can respect that. But I can't do this anymore. I can't live in limbo with some part of me always waiting for Temari to come back and say it was all a big misunderstanding." He shook his head.  
"I'm tired of living a half-life. If there's any happiness for me out there then I have to try to find it, I owe myself that, at least. It's time to make choices, for better or for worse. And maybe it's time for you to stop waiting for him. Tell me what you want, Tenten, and whatever it is I'll try to make it happen for you. You deserve to be happy". That pleading note she had no resistance against was back in his voice.

Tenten was still reeling with the idea that there might be no more Shikamaru in her life. When had he become such an integral part of her? Swallowing the lump in her throat she whispered,

"I want you to be happy … I'd do …. a lot of things to make sure you're happy …" her voice trailed off.  
"But I've asked the impossible" Shikamaru finished softly.

Her eyes flew to his, stricken, searching for any pain she might have caused. Shikamaru gave a short laugh,

"I've got to admire your loyalty, even if it is totally misplaced," his expression softened, "I can't fight a memory, Tenten. I made my peace with Neji's ghost years ago, but he's always in your eyes, never far from your thoughts.

I don't pretend to understand what he is to you or why you cling so faithfully to a fading dream. But you are slowly destroying yourself and I can't help you do it anymore. I'm begging you, for your sake, if not for mine, let him go."

"I can't…" the words were a tortured breath, dragged from her against her will. Fighting for control of her emotions, she turned to him again. "You're right, though. You do deserve better than this. You should be happy. Should be trying to find that happiness with someone … whole … not wasting your time here with me."

Shikamaru groaned in frustration, "Don't you see that you deserve all of that, too? You could be whole, Tenten. If you only allowed the people who care about you close enough to help you heal."

"It's not that simple … you don't understand … " she was nearly crying again. _No, damnit, I refuse to cry!_

"If you're going to go, then go, please, Shikamaru. There's no point in talking about this. What's done is done and

I am what I am, and that can't be helped. I never could see anything but Neji in the future." She gulped back the tears again.

"You're right, I don't understand, but I'd like to. I'm not going anywhere, Tenten. Not in the way you mean.

I don't give up on the people who matter to me." His gentle voice was her undoing. The thought of him leaving, of having to bear her burdens alone again, unable to find comfort in him, broke the fragile hold she had on her emotions and she found herself spilling all of her darkest secrets into his care.

He waited quietly for her to gain enough control to use her voice, "He was everything to me. We've been together one way or another since we were children. He's my only family. I never needed anyone or anything but him. So many times people asked me how I could stand him, they were afraid of his all-seeing eyes, his perceptive nature. But I loved that about him. How he could always know exactly what I wanted before I even knew myself. It was as if our lives had already been mapped out many times, the way we fell into each section of it so easily. It just seemed so natural." She was quiet for a time and Shikamaru just let her think. He had obviously underestimated the bond that had existed between them for far longer than anyone had guessed.

Then she turned bleak eyes to him and said quietly, "When he left … I-I was pregnant. " Shikamaru's eyes flew to hers in shock. "He left before I could tell him. I'd only found out that day. I hadn't wanted to mention it before I was completely sure. The clan, you know. But then he left and the Hokage took me in for questioning-"

"What? But the Hokage said you were being cared for privately while they tried to sort out what happened … that you'd had a breakdown. That they couldn't allow visitors. For your protection and your health."

Shikamaru interrupted, frowning. "Of course we were all suspicious. Such a magnanimous act from our dearly beloved leader? I don't think so. He is the man who founded Root after all, took kids and turned them into emotionless machines so he could have controllable soldiers. But to actually take you in for questioning …" his eyes followed her carefully as she entwined her fingers in an agitated gesture. Almost as if a light bulb went on in his head, he sucked a breath in, steeling himself for the worst.

"Tenten, where is your child?" he asked quietly. She shook her head, tremors rocking her body.

Shikamaru reached for her ignoring the hand she held out to ward him off.

Tenten started to cry in earnest, deep sobs wracking her body. He rocked her slowly, repeating,

"It's okay, it's okay," helplessly. After a long while, she managed to fight her way back through the waves of pain and regained control.

"T-the Hokage held me for questioning for nearly two m-months," she took up the tale, "They questioned me relentlessly, they wouldn't accept that I knew nothing. They kept saying that Neji was a danger to the village,

that he was too powerful to just let him go. That his intentions were obviously bad since he'd left under such suspicious circumstances. I kept saying he'd just said goodbye and that he couldn't tell me where he was going-" Tenten gulped a deep breath before continuing. "I-I wasn't mistreated, not exactly, I mean, they didn't bring in

Ibiki-san or anything, they didn't torture me physically, but the strain was just too much. I couldn't take it. I was so scared. I didn't know if they were ever going to let me go, didn't know what they would do to Neji. My body couldn't handle the strain on top of being pregnant. I-I miscarried at 15 w-weeks. My baby was all I had left of him and then I lost that last link, too." Leaning over with her head on her knees, Tenten gasped for air.

Shikamaru was frozen in shock, he'd always known she was hiding something, that her scars ran deep, but he'd had no idea that she'd been carrying a secret like this around. "God, Tenten, I am so sorry. So very sorry."

He rubbed a hand along her back, stroked her hair, staring worriedly as she curled up against the pain, fighting for breath. Finally the spasm seemed to pass and she straightened up, turning her tearstained face up to his.  
"So you see? I can't ever leave Neji behind. We consumed each other a long time ago. That's why I think something terrible must have happened to him. He would never leave me for this long. Without Neji … there can be no Tenten."

She closed her eyes and took a shuddering breath. "Now please leave." Without protest Shikamaru got up, pausing to drop a kiss on her hair, he left quietly, his heart breaking for the girl he left behind. He didn't know so much about her and Neji having consumed each other. To him it seemed more like Neji had broken her.

_**A/N: I know the most obvious thing would've been to use Chouji in the scene at the beginning of the chapter but I just couldn't imagine Chouji and Shikamaru having that conversation. I picked Kotetsu because I like him and because I thought he would be believable. They worked together on Team Asuma in the Hidan arc, so they actually know each other and since Kotetsu is a Hokage lackey I thought he fit the setting. If you ha**__**ve any better ideas, let me know! **_

_**As always R&R, pleeeaaase**_**?**


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N: So, this chapter doesn't really do much in terms of advancing the plot but it sort of wrote itself and then it just seemed to fit the story in general. Hopefully it's not too bad! **_

_**Warning**__**: lime ahead ... erm … yes, let's just leave it at that!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**_

_**Chapter 4**_

The next afternoon found Shikamaru slowly making his way through the streets to his apartment, thinking about Tenten's revelations the previous day. Hoping that maybe, finally having let it all out, she could begin to heal. He reached his front door, unlocked, and was on the point of stepping inside when he became aware of eyes on his back. He looked up swiftly, instantly defensive. It was Temari.

His jaw dropped when she smiled tentatively up at him.

"What the hell do you want?" he asked brusquely.

"To talk. Please. I won't take much of your time." She said quietly, holding her hands up in a conciliatory gesture. Her unconfrontational manner, so unexpected, threw him for a moment. Then he sighed. What could it hurt to hear her out? She'd say her piece, leave and that would be the end of it.

"Come on in." He held the door open for her, not moving out of the way. He watched her swallowing convulsively and smirked to himself. _That's right, princess. No way am I making this easy for you. _She seemed to steel herself and brushed past him, under his arm, with her head held high. Perversely _he_ was the one sucking in a breath as the scent of desert flowers washed over him. _Damnit. _He scowled and followed her inside.

She stood awkwardly in the middle of his living room waiting for him to join her. Grudgingly, he remembered the manners his mother had drilled into him all his life. "Sit. Would you care for something to drink?"  
She cleared her throat as she perched on the end of the sofa, "No, thank you. I really don't want to keep you." Shikamaru lowered himself into an armchair across from her and waited expectantly.

Temari took a deep breath, and with her eyes roving all over the room, settling on everything except his gaze, she said in a rush, "I wanted to apologize to you. I had no right to say the things I did. What you do in your private life is none of my business and I'm sorry for creating such a scene."  
His mouth nearly fell open. _Temari's apologizing once a day now? _  
"Um, well, uh, that's ok … I mean, apology accepted. I said some fairly unforgivable things myself. I'm sorry."  
"That's the thing. You were right but thank you." She stared down at her hands, a light blush colouring her cheeks. At this point, Shikamaru felt he'd fallen into an alternate reality. Was this really Temari?

"So, um, I wanted to apologize, which I have now done, so I'm just going to go. You've probably got a lot of things you want to take care of and I don't want to be in your way … " babbling, another thing very unlike Temari, she made her way to the front door. Hand on the knob she turned and smiled tremulously at Shikamaru who was still sitting motionless.

"So, that's that and from now on I promise I'll behave like a reasonable adult and not bite your head off," she turned to leave, then quickly swung back around. Staring at him with a suspicious brightness to her eyes she said, "Be happy, Shika."

Then she turned and fled, her courage obviously deserting her. _What the hell? _Shikamaru shook his head bemusedly. _Was she … crying?_ He groaned, dropping his head into his hands. It really wasn't his week.

All the crying women all over the place. All he needed now was to make his mother cry, if he'd managed to make Temari cry he could make _anyone_ cry, and he'd have broken some kind of record. To be honest, he envied them that ability. He wished _he_ could just curl up into a little ball and cry. Anything to be rid of the burning tightness that had formed in his chest on hearing Tenten's story.

Getting to his feet he went after Temari. If she was crying because of him he had an obligation to make sure she was all right, after all. _Lame excuse, Nara. You just want to see her again. _

Temari made her way blindly through the streets, not in the mood for seeing any more people just yet. Darkness was falling rapidly by the time she found herself in the deserted park. Taking stock of her surroundings she realized she was at the top of a little hill, beneath a big, old oak tree. A tree under which she'd spent a great deal of time with Shikamaru. Sinking to her knees on the soft grass she buried her face in her hands. She hated to cry. It was a sign of weakness. Struggling to control her emotions, she jerked in shock and nearly screamed when she felt arms encircling her shaking body. Her head swung around, her eyes colliding with Shikamaru's, his gaze unfathomable. She gasped as he pulled her to her feet and into his embrace.

"It's not as bad as all that. I wasn't that angry at you." Shikamaru gave her a crooked grin and stroked her hair. The fight went out of her and Temari gave in and allowed him to hold her as she cried. Finally, the tears seemed to have been spent and she pulled away awkwardly.

He didn't let go as she wiped a hand across her eyes and said, "Sorry. Again. Now I'm even ruining your clothes."  
He laughed, a deep rumble in his chest. "It's fine. Wasn't particularly attached to this shirt anyway." She smiled wanly, still trying to free herself from his arms without being too obvious about it.  
Silence descended as she looked away, burningly aware of his eyes on her face, searching for answers. Finally he gave up on waiting for her to speak first and said, "Wanna talk about it?"

"Nothing to talk about." She said with forced cheerfulness. "I was upset, obviously. All this apologizing is a traumatic experience for me." She even managed to force a laugh. Temari was feeling quite proud of her acting ability until Shikamaru's hand brushed her chin, tilting her face up so he could look searchingly into her eyes

.  
"Nice try. I'm not falling for it. What's up?" he asked still staring at her, refusing to let her turn her head away. Temari swallowed convulsively and nearly winced, how was she supposed to think when he was this close?

"I-I just … like I said, I was upset," she prevaricated, trying to avoid his eyes. He always saw far too much.

"By what?" he asked coolly, undeterred by her evasive response. "Was it me? I didn't mean to hurt you. And I'm truly sorry if I did," he added softly.

Swallowing what was beginning to feel like a never-ending river of tears, Temari closed her eyes, "That's my line."  
"Don't do that." Shikamaru's voice rang with frustration.

"Do what?"  
"Shut me out. Shut it in. Whatever. Talk to me. I'm not giving up until you tell me what's wrong so you might as well get it over with."

Her temper flared, "Over-confident much? If I don't want to talk about it, I won't."  
He closed his eyes and muttered something that sounded a lot like "troublesome woman" then simply looked at her expectantly.

Temari stared back, her jaw set in an expression of stubbornness that he knew all too well. She shifted in his arms, still trying to get free but somehow managed to press even closer against him. Abruptly the ever-present spark between them flared into a flame.

His body moved before his brain had given the commands and he leaned forward and kissed her eyes, kissed her cheeks, tasted the salt of her tears. She sighed and lifted her face. Their lips met softly, clung for an interminable moment, and her tongue slid out to trace his lips. Barely suppressing a groan Shikamaru did as she silently asked and deepened the kiss.

It was as if they'd never been parted at all, and in a flash of clarity Shikamaru realized that he'd been utterly ridiculous to think he could ever have a fulfilling life with anyone but the woman he now held in his arms.  
Her taste was addictive, she was addictive. The only one he'd ever wanted with such fierce intensity.

Breaking apart for air, they stared at each other.

She spoke, so softly he had to strain to make sure he heard her correctly, "I love you. So much. I never stopped. I tried to but I couldn't." He leaned forward to capture her mouth again, breathing the words against her lips, "I love you, too. Never stopped. Never forgot."

She wound her arms around his neck, pressing her body tightly against his as their tongues mingled in a sinuous dance. His hands slid up to cradle her head and he buried his fingers in her sweet-smelling hair. He began to pull at the ties holding it off her face and soon her hair fell loosely to her shoulders.

He laid a trail of kisses along her jaw as he played with her hair, softly combing his fingers through it, relishing its silkiness and the fact that he was touching her again after all this time. Temari gasped softy as he grazed his teeth along the shell of her ear. He felt her shiver and his tongue flicked out to taste the sensitive spot behind her ear.

He moved down, sucking softly on the curve of her neck as his hands roved up and down her back, re-learning the shape of her body. She moaned and he claimed her mouth again, his hands sliding down to hold her hips, pulling her hard against him.

Her hands worked their way into his hair, pulling the hair band out so she could bury her fingers in it's thickness, pulling him closer, kissing him with increasing passion. He slowly backed her deeper into the screen the branches formed. Finally hidden from the world he could stop behaving himself, could stop thinking and just feel. He could hear her heart beating frantically, almost drowning out the sound of her soft, gasping breaths. He tangled his fingers with hers, lifting her hands over her head, pinning her body to the rough bark with his own. Temari wrapped her legs around him and he trailed his hands slowly down her arms, stroking along the curve of her sides. His hands stilled on her waist as they finally broke apart to breathe. Somehow their clothes had fallen haphazardly to the ground. Time seemed to stand still as one furious kiss melted straight into another.  
"Mine." The word ended in a groan as he pushed into her, breathing hard, his heart thundering in his ears. "Yours," she agreed, gasping softly as she twisted his hair around her fingers, gently pulling him closer once more.

***

Temari couldn't remember the last time she'd felt this good. Probably the last time she'd been with Shikamaru like this, she thought wryly to herself, unable to stop the silly smile on her face. She felt him stir in her arms, drawing slowly away from her and she had to fight the urge to cling to him. She kept her gaze on him as he pulled away.

He stared back at her, the uncertainty obvious in his eyes as he searched for words. She smiled slightly to reassure him, sensing his unspoken question. _How could I ever regret any second spent with you?_ The joy washing through her broke the spell he held her in and the giggles bubbled out of her. She only laughed harder at his look of total consternation. Then he gave her favourite crooked grin, and said threateningly, "You'd better not be laughing at me."  
"No," she choked through the giggles. "Just happy."

He levered himself off her and she stretched languidly, still feeling the impression of his body on hers. She began trying to pull her soaked yukata back on, laughing at the awkwardness of the wet cloth on her skin. Glancing ruefully at an already dressed Shikamaru she indicated the soaked, the muddy garment clinging in odd bunches to her body, "I really hope no one sees me. This looks ridiculous!"

He reached out for her hand, pulling her to her feet and back into his arms. Bending down, he brushed his lips lightly across her mouth whispering, "You look beautiful."  
"That's okay, then. Who cares what anyone else thinks," she breathed, her arms twining around his neck.

His hands cupped her face, holding her close while the kiss went on and on. Temari sighed as the familiar fire started swirling through her again. Pulling back, she stepped away, trying to gain some distance before she lost her head. Again.  
"I'd better go before I catch pneumonia," she said with a slight smile. She drew a finger over his lips, kissed him again before she whispered, "Thank you, Shika." Without waiting for a reply she turned to leave.

Her lips touched his and his eyes slid shut automatically. Far too quickly her mouth was gone and her whispered thanks barely had time to register in his mind before she was leaving.

_No, __damnit. Not again! _Reacting almost on instinct he moved swiftly forward, grabbed her from behind, spinning her around and hauled her back into his arms.

"Stay." It was very nearly a command, only the pleading in his eyes showing the truth of how he felt. His eyes bored into hers trying to force her to capitulate. She licked her lips uncertainly and he pulled her closer, the vague idea of kissing her until she gave in forming in the back of his mind.

"Stay," he whispered into her mouth, a note of pleading entering his voice. She trembled in his arms and he could almost feel her resolve weakening. Willing to press any advantage he could get, he deepened the kiss.

A tremulous breath hissed through her lips.

"That's not fair, Shika. Not to you." The answer was so unexpected that he froze, forgetting his campaign of persuasion.

"What do you mean, not fair to me?" he asked, nonplussed.

"I'm still married. I'm still going to have to go back and I don't want to hurt you ever again. You should just forget about me," Temari sighed sadly, pushing at his arms around her, trying to step away.

Shikamaru gritted his teeth. She was right. If you looked at it that way, it _would_ be a lot smarter to get out now.

As if that had ever been an option. He looked into her face, fingers softly tracing the line of her cheekbone.

"Temari, it's far too late for that. Even before this, I was in way too deep to ever get out. And I don't want to. I realize that there are … difficulties … but we can get through that." He hated the pleading in his voice, hated that she was able to reduce him to begging. 

"It's not that simple. I told you before. There's a lot more at stake here than you know. If Jiku knew …" she gnawed her lip in agitation.

"It is that simple. Mari, please. Don't do this to us again. We'll be careful, no one will ever know, if that's what you want. I'll come to Suna when you can't come here, we can make it work."

"I-I'm still married, Shika. Publicly I will always have to dance attendance to Jiku…" her eyes drifted shut as he came closer, tracing her lips with his thumb.  
"It doesn't matter. We'll know the truth. Please. Stay with me. You want to."

"Y-you say that _now_. I know you, it'll eat away at you, having to skulk in the shadows and eventually you will be jealous."

"I won't be. The shadows are my world after all. I have all of you and he has nothing but your signature on a piece of paper. What's to be jealous of?"

Temari gave up. Couldn't resist him, no matter if it was right or wrong. She didn't want to go back to her empty life with only memories to keep her company. If he wanted this then who was she to deny them this small piece of happiness.  
Sensing his imminent victory Shikamaru said, "Come home with me?"  
"Y-yes …" Temari looked a little dazed.

Turning quickly, Shikamaru grabbed her hand and dragged her after him. Luck was on their side and they met no one on the way to his apartment. As soon as he had pulled Temari inside, he pushed her roughly up against the door, desire raging out of control once again. She matched him kiss for kiss, their hands roving wildly over each other. Desperately clinging to his sanity, Shikamaru broke the kiss, propelling her toward his bedroom.

"This time a bed would be great," he muttered and Temari laughed allowing him to steer her into the room.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**_

_**Chapter 5**_

Neji jerked awake at the sound of pain-filled screams echoing up from the lower-level laboratories. For the millionth time in the last two years he had to stop himself from rushing to help. Feeling physically ill, he lay back on his sleeping pallet, taking deep breaths, trying to ignore the almost animalistic sounds of the unfortunate victim.

_Think of something else,_he ordered himself sternly. A picture of her face swam before his eyes. Her sparkling smile, the silky hair, her unbelievably soft skin. _Tenten. _He sighed. This line of thought was hardly conducive to calming his emotions but he couldn't let her image go just yet.

_Soon, Ten. Just hang on a little wh__ile longer. I'll be home soon and I'll never leave you again. I'll never have to and that will have made all of this worth it. Of course, that scenario relies heavily on the Hokage's willingness to accept my information in exchange for a pardon, _he admitted silently.

He ran a hand through his hair. The wonder still flowed through him whenever he felt his uncovered forehead. Not since Hinata's third birthday had his forehead been uncovered. Not even while he slept. The physical proof of the cage to which he'd been confined had never been allowed to see the light of day, so to speak, but now the sense of being unburdened still hadn't faded, no matter that it had been nearly two years since the curse seal's removal.

His thoughts flowed to the past. Almost three years ago, now, he'd been on a mission. His team had been infiltrating a criminal organization that seemed to be responsible for kidnapping innocent villagers. It was then that he'd first heard about the Jiyuu1 organization's capabilities. It had taken many hours of additional research before he'd been sure but the proof had been staring him in the face, _they could remove his curse seal. _

He'd been utterly consumed by the idea. As much as he'd thought he'd put all that behind him, the remotest hope of being free had awakened all his old desires. He could build a life for himself and Tenten. No longer tied to a fate he'd never chosen nor deserved - finally able to reach his full potential. No longer on puppet strings.

He'd been resigned to his destiny, had made peace – even been quite proud – of his commitment to the Hyuuga clan, but the vows he'd made had faded into the background the moment his lips had touched Tenten's for the first time. What he'd always taken for granted had suddenly become the driving force in his life. He existed because she did, and he was much too selfish to ever let her go. No matter the guilt of confining her to a life that he wouldn't wish on his worst enemy, he couldn't be without her. She deserved better than second best, he was constantly reminded of that, and the idea had been like a fire that burned brighter every day. They could be together openly, no more hiding. He would finally be in a position to fight for what he wanted, to fight for her. As soon all the preparations had been made, he'd left.

It had taken him nearly a year to track down the man he needed. After months spent convincing a criminal that he could be useful, despite his lack of cold, hard cash, he and Naoki had struck a bargain. After the removal of the curse seal, he would work for the Jiyuu for two years, recruiting, doing whatever tasks came his way. Then he would be free to leave. The arrangement suited his own needs perfectly, the time spent working enabled him to collect the necessary information he needed to bargain for his freedom once he returned to Konoha. If they let him live, of course. His path back to Tenten was still fraught with problems. He was never left alone.

He'd done things that had sickened him, the only way he'd been able to get through the last years had been to keep his goal firmly in mind and Tenten's image alive in his heart. The screams reached their peak, seemed to go on forever. Unable to block out the horror of the sound he fixed her face firmly in his mind, concentrating on that to the exclusion of all else. _Soon. Don't give up on me yet, Ten. _

_***  
_

Tenten threw the book at the wall opposite with enough force to break the spine. She was restless. Bored. In the months since she and Shikamaru had gone their separate ways, she'd had nothing to distract her from how dreary her life actually was. It was as if, having relived the worst time of her life for Shikamaru, the walls she'd built around those thoughts had been broken down completely and now she was unable to block it from her mind.

She'd cleaned. And cleaned some more. Rearranged all her cupboards. The apartment couldn't get any cleaner and tidier. She'd trained. And trained some more. Until even Lee had called it quits, saying he was exhausted. Still, sleep did not come easily. She spent most of her nights in the gray area between wakefulness and sleep, hearing Neji call her name. The guilt was always overwhelming in those moments. Guilt for the betrayal of what she held most dear, guilt over losing the baby, guilt over her own weakness, guilt over Shikamaru and her inability to give him what he wanted. That was when the tears started, until once more she nearly dozed off and then the vicious cycle would start up all over again.

In an attempt to banish the dark thoughts she'd requested any and all missions. Even D-rank ones, until she was told, in no uncertain terms, to take a break. Now she was reduced to reading. Something she'd avoided in the past years. She was afraid of waking her imagination up - didn't want even more emotions clouding her thinking.

She groaned and buried her face in the couch cushions. _What to do?_ Any activity with the girls was out. After having worked herself half to death in the last weeks they were all convinced that she was pining after Shikamaru. The inevitable conversations about her feelings were something she absolutely refused to face. She'd also seen quite enough of Lee and Gai. _Strange how much more annoying their antics are if there aren't any other sane people around to act as a buffer, _she contemplated in vague amusement.

_Maybe a long, hot bubble bath. _She considered the idea. _Who knows? It might even relax me enough to sleep tonight. _Groaning, she rolled off the couch and headed to the bathroom to run the water. _I'm getting to be as lazy as Shika, _she thought. Sitting on the edge of the tub, she was so deep in thought she barely noticed the rising water level. _ Now I think about it, Shikamaru's been acting very strange. Decidedly not lazy. Avoiding everyone, always holed up in his apartment when he's not out on missions. Which is strange, in and of itself, I can't remember him ever taking so many missions, and so far afield. _Absently, she swirled her fingers through the water, creating a rainbow of colors reflected through the bubbles. _Still, he seems … almost … happy? No, that's not quite right, more … at peace, sort of complete? _Shaking her head to dispel the fanciful notions, she caught sight of the rising water. As the bubbles started spilling over the sides of the tub, she shrieked and in the ensuing scramble the topic was forgotten.

****

Neji followed the winding corridors, his heart pounding loudly in his ears. The unexpected summons of a few minutes ago could not mean anything good. He'd returned from another "errand" not two hours ago and the sick churning in his stomach had still not really subsided. _Please, no more errands. I can't face taking anyone else today, _he thought as he swiftly made his way to the laboratory where Naoki waited for him.

He was just about to knock, when the door was opened from the inside and Neji found himself face to face with a man he'd never seen before. Habit had him noting every little detail of the man's appearance. Every piece of information that he could take with him was invaluable. The man was of average height, with dirty blonde hair, light eyes and non-descript features. He was wearing robes like those of the desert clans in the Wind Country, his nose was sharp, his chin pointed, his lips pressed into a thin line. _I guess all did not go according to plan, _Neji smirked to himself, _it rarely does with Naoki. _The man gave Neji a dirty look as he passed and too late Neji realized that he had not moved aside for the stranger to pass. _Hmm, someone used to deference. _Filing the information away, Neji moved forward at the sound of his name.

"Ah, Neji-san, come in." Unfailingly polite, as always, Naoki beckoned Neji inside without looking up from the desk he was working at. "Who would have guessed that dormant chakra pathways would react to Lightning element like that?" he mused, the comment directed more to himself than to Neji who was still standing just inside the door. Out of bitter experience Neji knew that he did not want to see what the man was working on.

Silence reigned in the room as Neji waited for Naoki to speak. Finally, the other man looked up, the fluorescent lights reflecting off his wire-rimmed glasses. Neji still marveled at Naoki's unprepossessing air. If he hadn't had first-hand knowledge of the twisted, power-hungry nature of the man, if he hadn't seen the cruelty or the perversions, he would never have guessed that this man was a criminal mastermind. Naoki looked like someone's grandfather.

"Thank you for coming, Neji-san. I hope I did not keep you waiting," Naoki smiled at him, waving towards a chair. "Can I offer you any refreshment? I understand you've only just returned from collecting more specimens."

"No, thank you." Neji stayed exactly where he was, though he did not miss the slight smirk that crossed Naoki's features when he declined.

"Straight to business, as usual, hmm? Very well, as you wish." Smiling slightly, Naoki moved to stand directly in front of him. Sighing, he inspected Neji's face, taking in the slight bruising on his chin, "Merciful, as always. Really, Neji-san, you shouldn't let emotions get in the way of doing your job. It was completely unnecessary to allow one of them to fight back."

Neji inclined his head, fighting with all his might to keep the expressionless mask he'd cultivated in place. Staring straight ahead, standing almost to attention, he waited for Naoki to finish inspecting his features. Abruptly turning away, Naoki moved to a table and began selecting items, seemingly at random.

"It's been two years since you first came to me, Neji-san. I think we can agree that both parties have honored the agreement reached at that time. I removed your curse seal, you've performed any and all tasks I asked of you since then." Eyeing the other man's movements, Neji merely nodded. _What is he up to? _

"I'm sure you've collected more than enough information on Jiyuu to buy your freedom once you return to your village and I've nearly completed this stage of my research. In other words, it is time for both of us to move on and it is here that we begin to reach obstacles. My … colleagues … seem to feel that it would be, shall we say, _prudent_ to remove you from the equation. They are of the opinion that we cannot take unnecessary risks when we are this close to completing our little project." Naoki smiled slightly as he turned.

Struggling to remain calm, Neji tried to formulate an escape plan. "I do not see any difficulties. You will let me leave, as we agreed. I don't know where you got the idea that I've been collecting information on Jiyuu but, I assure you, that is not the case. I will abide by the conditions of our agreement."

"Ah, you don't really expect me to believe that, now do you?" Naoki chided softly, advancing on Neji again, a vial of clear liquid in his hand. Abandoning all pretence at civility, Neji moved into his fighting stance. "Stay back." Without slowing in the slightest, Naoki smirked. "You really do not give me enough credit, Neji-san."

His attention wholly focused on the man in front of him, Neji heard the slight whistle of a speeding senbon seconds too late. Even as he turned, the razor sharp needle struck the back of his neck. Almost instantly Neji felt the power flowing from his body. From the corner of his eye he caught sight of a shadowy figure moving out from behind him. As the person stepped into the light, awareness blossomed in Neji's mind. _Tricked. Damnit. Shadow clone behind me, and a senbon straight into my blind-spot. No way out. _

His legs gave out and he crumpled to the ground, unable to even groan. Panting slightly, Neji stared up at Naoki standing over him. "You see, Neji-san, I've watched you rather closely in the last years. You hide that blind-spot well, but not well enough. However, I give you this little thought to speed you to sleep. _I did not agree with my colleagues_."

Fighting through the fog surrounding his brain, Neji tried to make sense of the other man's words but to no avail. With his last strength he pulled Tenten's image from the recesses of his mind as his eyes slid slowly shut.

***

There was pain. Something hard - he seemed to be lying on something hard. _I can feel? If I can feel then I must exist? Am I alive?_ Cautiously he inspected his surroundings with his senses. Yes, he could smell greenery, hear a faint rustling, could feel the hardness cushioning his body. Carefully he opened his eyes, only to snap them shut again at the brightness. Red still painting the back of his eyelids, he took a deep breath and tried again. This time was easier and as his vision slowly came into focus he realized that he was in the middle of a clearing. No one seemed to be with him.

Struggling with his foggy thoughts he tried to remember the last thing that had happened to him. _I was with Naoki … the shadow clone … the senbon … "I did not agree with my colleagues" he said …it wasn't poison?_

Shaking his head, Neji slowly pushed himself up onto his elbows, trying to sit up. When he'd managed that feat, he slowly started to inspect his extremities, searching for any injuries. It was then that he caught sight of the square of paper that had been weighted down with a rock next to him.

Still trembling from the effects of whatever it was that Naoki had coated the senbon with, he picked the piece of paper up and started to read. _Neji-san. I told you to give me a little credit, didn't I? Whatever my colleagues' opinions, I felt that simply doing away with you would be a ridiculous waste of talent. I trust that the information you've managed to gather will be sufficient to ensure your freedom and I look forward to meeting you again. It will be interesting to pit myself against strength such as yours. Naoki._

_What the hell? The man really is totally insane. _As he lay there, slowly absorbing all that had occurred since earlier that day, Neji felt the hope blossoming inside him. It seemed that he was free. Finally. He could go home.

He remained where he was, contemplating that one glorious thought, as he waited for control over his limbs. When, at last, his mind felt clear enough to plan, Neji began to plot a course for Konoha. The only forest in the vicinity of the laboratory lay slightly to the east, though he'd never ventured in that direction himself. Since this seemed the logical place for Naoki to have left him and considering that not even a full afternoon had passed since he'd last seen the man, Neji calculated that he had to move north-east, angling across country, which left him roughly a week away from Konoha. When he was finally able to stand, night was falling but he did not hesitate as he started the last leg of the journey he had begun nearly three years ago.

1 Jiyuu means freedom (according to the Internet). The significance of the name will still be explained.


	6. Chapter 6

_**A/N: Thank you so much for all of the lovely reviews! A word of warning: this chapter turned out to be quite long …**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto**_

_**Chapter 6**_

Shikamaru entered his apartment softly, trying not to wake Temari. She'd arrived in Konoha earlier that day, for an unexpected visit, but he'd been unable to get away until now. If he hadn't been sure that the Hokage knew nothing about him and Temari, he would've sworn that the man had taken a sadistic pleasure in keeping him late. It had been sheer torture, having to pretend an interest in the political ramifications of any given strategy, all the while knowing that Temari was waiting for him. Taking off his shoes, he swiftly made his way into the bedroom. For a minute he simply stared at her, marveling at the way the moonlight bathed her skin in a silvery sheen.

Sighing, he lay down beside her, softly brushing his fingertips down her arm. The last months had been the worst and the best of his life. He'd taken to avoiding everyone, even Chouji and Tenten. _Especially_ Chouji and Tenten. They knew him far too well, he'd never be able to hide this from them. He was aware that everyone knew that something was going on but, aside from his mother, they'd all chalked it up to depression about the split with Tenten and no one had probed too deeply. Of course, he didn't like having to hide, hated having to lie, and he absolutely loathed having to let Temari go back, but in moments like this he knew that he would do it all again, given the choice.

It had been nearly a month since they'd last seen each other. Lately, no matter how carefully they tried to plan it, problems kept cropping up at the last minute, keeping them apart. _That's what you get for having an affair with a married woman, _Shikamaru thought, trying to swallow his frustration with the entire mess._ Affair, _Shikamaru grimaced. He had come to hate that word. He'd never thought he would be capable of hate, such intense emotions were just too troublesome, but, then, no one but Temari had ever been able to motivate him, the fact that she was also the only one he could ever have intense emotions about wasn't really surprising. _All I ever wanted was a simple, easy life. Normal family, days spent watching the clouds … but no, I had to go and fall for the most troublesome woman in the world. _Shikamaru had barely completed the thought before Temari began to stir, smiling in her sleep. His heart leapt as it always did when she was in his vicinity and silently he admitted that troublesome as she may be, he wouldn't have her any other way.

Pushing all the thoughts away, he gently shook her shoulder. Her eyes fluttered, opened, and she smiled softly up at him. "Hey," she said sleepily, stretching her body against his, "what took you so long?"

"Damn Hokage wanted to discuss each and every little aspect of any given plan twenty thousand times," Shikamaru smiled back at her, amazed at how one little twitch of her lips had the power to lift his spirits.

"Hmm, damn Hokage. I missed you …" Temari sighed as she pulled his head down for a kiss.

Much later, they lay tangled with each other and the sheets, Temari's head resting on his shoulder, one of his hands buried in her hair, the other tracing random patterns on her bare back. Secretly, Shikamaru couldn't help but bask the gloating satisfaction that, married or not, he was still seeing her as she was now – naked and vulnerable, and soft and sexy as hell. He didn't particularly care for that side of himself, undiscovered until he'd had to share Temari with someone else. He didn't dare let her see the possessive, jealous side of his nature – she would not take kindly to being viewed in such a light and he was quite attached to all his body parts.

Lazily trailing a hand down her side, he said, "Not that I'm complaining, but to what do we owe this unexpected honor? You weren't due back in Konoha until next month."  
"Something came up and who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth?" Temari grinned at him mischievously.

"What's going on? Did Gaara–sama have a message for the Hokage?" Shikamaru asked, more out of wanting to hear the lilting cadences of her voice than out of any real interest.  
Temari sobered and sighed. Avoiding his gaze she replied, "No, not really. I have to go away for a while. So, of course, I needed to come here to make sure that everything was running smoothly before I left."

It took Shikamaru a moment before he registered the implications of her words. "What? You're going away?"

Temari sighed again, "Jiku has to make a progress of sorts through the countryside. You know, showing himself to the public, meeting with the rural leaders and all that. So, of course, his wife has to be present. It's only for a couple of months."  
Shikamaru sat up, his back rigid as he turned away from her. "Do you have to go?"  
"Yes, I have to. Shika, don't be like that, please," Temari sat up, winding the sheet around her body, as Shikamaru swung his legs off the bed. Barely pausing to pull on his pants, he headed to the door. With his back still turned, he said, "I know, just … give me a minute."

He headed outside, still fighting against that possessive side of himself - the part that was considering simply forbidding her from going anywhere with anyone but himself, the part that roared at him to tie her up to stop her if it came to that. Clenching his hands around the balcony railings, he took a deep breath, allowing the cool air to calm him down. He stiffened again as he felt Temari's presence behind him.

"Shika, you promised. You promised to me that you wouldn't be jealous." He turned to meet her gaze, her eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at him. Forcing a smile that was more of a baring of his teeth, he turned his back again. _Don't lose it. Don't lose it. Don't lose it, _he chanted to himself. Feeling her soft hand on his back, he was unable to keep the mental pictures at bay any longer. Temari wrapped in only a sheet, stroking her hand down her lover's back in a comforting gesture - a lover that wasn't him.

He lost it. He couldn't stop the jealousy that raged through him. Slamming one hand forward onto the railings, he felt her move back in shock, didn't care. "Damnit, Temari. Do you have any idea what you're asking of me? In all this time, have I ever been jealous? Have I ever asked any questions? You show up and blithely inform me that you're going to be spending the next couple of months with Jiku, and you expect me to just be okay with that? Do you have any idea how it feels? To think of him touching you, kissing you, making love to you?"

"It's not like that. You know it's not like that. I told you before. I married him for state reasons. Not for love. With me and him … it's not like with you and me. He doesn't … we don't … I mean …" Temari's voice trailed away as she shrugged helplessly.

"You expect me to believe that? What kind of idiot do you take me for? What possible reason could you have for keeping him from your bed?" Shikamaru snarled at her and he was gratified to see the flush of color along her cheeks.

"Yes, I do expect you to believe that - because it's the _truth_. Jiku has never been in my bed, he's never touched me and the only kiss we've ever shared was at our wedding. I've only ever slept with one man – you! But thanks so much for the faith you have in me," Temari smiled, a bitter twisting of her lips, "When I said marriage of state, I meant it, Shikamaru. Jiku wanted to marry me for my connections, for the power I would bring him. Not for my body, or my mind, or anything that matters."

Shikamaru felt his anger draining away as he watched the play of emotions on her face. Sighing, he closed his eyes, struggled to soften his voice, "I'm sorry. I want to believe that. So badly. But I just can't imagine anyone not wanting you."

Temari stared at him, her face an expressionless mask. "If you can't believe that, then believe that _I _don't want _him_."

"Why did you marry him, Temari? I admit that maybe back then I wasn't exactly ready for that kind of commitment, but couldn't you have waited a couple of years for me to be ready, if you wanted to get married that badly?" Shikamaru listened to his voice as if from a distance. Where the hell had that come from?

Temari stiffened as if he's slapped her, then her voice trembling, she said, "It wasn't like that. What part of that is so impossible to understand? I didn't _want_ to marry him. I _had_ to. For my village and for my brother - I had to sacrifice you for them. Can you understand that?"

"Did Gaara force you into it? Is that what you're saying?" Shikamaru arched a skeptical eyebrow at her. Temari turned away from him, walking back into the living room, shaking her head in confusion. "No, Gaara wouldn't do that. I-I … please can we just drop this?"

Grabbing her arm to stop her, Shikamaru said, "Temari, what the hell? Just tell me what's going on." He stared at her, trying to read the truth in her expression. Temari jerked her arm out of his hold and almost spat the words at him, "Fine. I fail to see how it matters, but if you must know, Gaara's lost a lot of influence in recent years. In the past the elders and the feudal authorities feared him and that gave him a hold over the council, but since it came out that Shukaku had been removed, they've challenged him more and more."

Shikamaru stared at her quizzically, he rarely had to have any situation explained to him but with Temari he'd learned that things were rarely as they seemed – he'd never really been able to figure her out, to predict her actions. Temari sighed and elaborated with an air of having to explain two plus two equaling four to a child. "Suddenly his youth is a huge drawback, they've conveniently forgotten that he managed perfectly in the past and they steadily chipped away at his hold over the village. Jiku, as the feudal lord, managed to get some of the Suna clans on his side, lobbying for Gaara's removal. He somehow convinced the clans to institute a vote of no confidence against Gaara. It got to a point where Gaara had to try to get Jiku on his side or risk being impeached as Kazekage, if that's even possible. A marriage proposal was put on the table, to create ties and through that an alliance. Or so Gaara hoped. Jiku accepted - as long as it was me. I think he figured that there was no way Gaara would do that to his own sister. And he was right. Gaara scratched the idea there and then, but what other option did we have? So I went to Jiku myself and accepted and then it was done and there was nothing Gaara could do about it. It got Jiku on his side, and through him Gaara regained the support of the powerful clans of Suna, which is what matters. With powerful allies Gaara had the leverage to go up against the council again."

Shikamaru exhaled and said, "Let me get this straight. You married Wind country's feudal lord so that your brother could stay Kazekage?"

"Yes, and then again no. It's not so much the position. Being Kazekage means, to Gaara, that he belongs, that he's accepted. It means everything to him, he proved himself, and he was rewarded for all his efforts and there was no way I was going to allow that to be taken away from him," Temari looked pleadingly at him.

"You have no idea what it was like growing up with Gaara. No matter who he was or what he did, he's still my brother. Having watched him try so hard to be accepted, to be a part of everything … I couldn't just sit back and watch as he lost it all. Not if there was something I could do to prevent it."

Shikamaru stared at her in astonishment. He'd always known she was fiercely loyal where her brothers and her village were concerned, but she'd never really talked about it and until this moment, he'd never realized how much her family meant to her. He was still struggling to find words when there was a knock on his door. Temari immediately turned to move back into the bedroom.

"Wait. Ignore it," Shikamaru commanded softly and she paused in the hallway. They stood frozen for a while, staring at each other but the knocking did not stop, if anything the person outside was now positively pounding on his door.

"Go," Temari whispered, "It's obviously an emergency." _It had better be, _Shikamaru thought in irritation as he stalked to the door. Wrenching it open, he snarled, "What?", only to find himself staring into Ino's bright blue eyes, currently filled with worry.

"I'm sorry to bother you but … I didn't know who else … I mean, it's just … " she stammered, out of breath, as if she had run to his apartment.

"Spit it out, Ino," he tried to keep the irritation from his voice.

"I was going home from Chouji's and passed by Tenten's, obviously, we're practically neighbors …" she gasped for breath.

"Get to the point, Ino. I don't have all night."  
"I, well, it's just … there was a lot of noise, screaming and things breaking. Tenten sounded kind of hysterical, and I thought … well, I didn't know who else to go to. I don't think there was anyone else with her and you're the only one she's still close to, since Neji …" Ino took a breath, holding a stitch in her side.

"Go. Get help. There should be a few chuunin, at least, on guard at the Hokage's tower," Shikamaru snapped, immediately moving into action.

"Yes," Ino nodded, "What are you going-?"

"I'm going over there now, but I might need back-up if anything's really wrong. Now go." Ino was already turning to go when he shut the door. Moving into his bedroom, his eyes met Temari's, willing her, begging her, to understand. She walked up to him and handed him his shirt. "Go," she said softly, kissing him quickly. "I'll see you later." Nodding, he pulled the shirt over his head, his eyes meeting hers gratefully. "I love you," he said, pressing a hard kiss to her forehead before turning and rushing out. Temari sank back onto the bed as she heard the front door close, "I love you, too."

*****

Tenten made her way into her bedroom, lighting a bedside lamp along the way. Bending to pick up her hairbrush, movement caught her peripheral vision. _Wait. Someone's out there? _She turned slowly to the terrace doors, her heart thundering with a strange sense of déjà vu.

She recognized his silhouette immediately. Even after all this time. As if in a dream, she walked slowly forward. Opened the door. Stood back to let him in. Already half-feeling his hands pulling her through, but this time he stepped quickly inside, having been granted entrance. _This is it. I've finally cracked. Lost it. Completely. I am having an actual hallucination, _she wondered at the sense of unreality. _It's not so bad. _ She'd always thought that hallucinations would feel more … real.The thoughts seemed to come from far away, were barely acknowledged. She was far too busy trying to make sense of what she was seeing. The long, dark hair, the eyes, his mouth …. Then he spoke, a single word, her name drawn on a sigh filled with so much longing that she felt the tears gathering in her eyes. "Tenten."

"Neji?" her whisper echoed with the disbelief that was curling through her body and for the first time in her life Tenten fainted.

Neji hadn't intended to talk to her tonight. He'd had a vague idea of speaking to Hiashi first. Surely the Hyuuga clan had enough power to get him a temporary pardon or something so he could at least move freely around the village. So he could see Tenten in the sunlight. He was so incredibly sick of skulking in the shadows. But he had to see her first. Make sure she was all right. And then he'd been unable to tear himself away.

She'd opened the door and he stepped through, instantly forgetting everything else as he drank in her features. She was a little pale but seemed to be handling the shock of his unexpected appearance well. She never spoke, only stared at him. Hesitantly he opened his mouth. To try to explain? To beg for forgiveness? He didn't know and all that emerged was her name. He tried to convey all of the things he was feeling with that one whispered word. She stared at him uncomprehendingly and made to reach out a hand, breathing his name in disbelief.

Then she fainted.

Neji moved quickly, catching her before she hit the ground, and laid her carefully on the bed. He stroked her hair off her face and whispered her name, willing her to wake up. "Ten. Tenten. Wake up. Come back to me."

His fingertips traced the shadows under her eyes, the line of her nose, the fullness of her mouth. He leaned forward and softly pressed his lips against hers. "Tenten," he called again. Unable to resist, he leaned forward to kiss her once more.

She stirred in his arms, her lashes fluttering open. For a long moment they simply stared into each other's eyes. Then she shook her head slightly, looked away and looked back again. "Neji?" she questioned.

"Yes, it's me. I'm really here," he confirmed softy, trying not to startle her again.

"Huh," she huffed. Neji stared at her blankly for a moment and then burst into laughter, rolling over to come to rest beside her.

"God, I missed you."

The sense of unreality started to fade once his laughter filled the room. Tenten stared at him unabashedly, still not really sure she wasn't hallucinating. She carefully considered the matter. His laughter had died away and he was now staring at her with such intensity that she could feel the blood heating her cheeks. She rolled over onto her side, and without really considering the action, she poked him in the chest. Hard. _Yip. Definitely real. _Neji grunted but made no other protest.

Suddenly, she was fully aware of all her surroundings - the stark reality of it. He really was here, in her room, after years of silence. Rolling off the bed, she stood staring at him, fighting against the unholy rage that filled her.

"Is there something the matter?" he asked finally, worried by her silence. He stood up and started towards her. Tenten closed her eyes and gave herself over to the rage. Reaching over to the dresser she grabbed the first thing her hand touched and threw it at his head with enough force to crack the plaster of the wall when he ducked.

"Ah, now, just give me a chance to explain." Neji held his hands up in surrender, backing away into the hallway, hoping that she wouldn't start throwing weapons. He really didn't want to destroy her hallway by using Kaiten. It would only make her angrier.

"You disappear. For years. No explanation. Then you decide to turn up and I have to let you _explain?_" Her voice gravitated steadily towards that hysterical pitch that he knew from experience would lead to physical pain. Lots of it. For him. At least she wasn't aiming for his blind spot. Yet. _Got to head her off before she hits that point. I was unprepared last time._ "Tenten! Just breathe. There's no need for violence! I don't want to hurt you," he didn't raise his voice, he'd never needed to before.

Tenten's eyes narrowed as she glared up at him, she opened her mouth again and Neji braced himself for the next barrage of sound but when she spoke her voice was low, calm. "You smug, arrogant, self-righteous …," her voice trailed off and he had to strain to hear the next words, "….how dare you … get out. Just get out. Go back to wherever the hell you came from." Her chest was heaving with emotion, her eyes bright. Neji stared at her. Not how he pictured it at all. "Ten. You don't mean that-"

"I didn't know where you were! Didn't know if you were okay! I thought you were dead." Her voice rose again but instead of anger, pain rang through the words. She sank to the ground, as if her legs had given out. The tears flowing freely down her cheeks, she stared up at him. "_Dead_, Neji. Oh god, I thought you were dead, too." She buried her face in her hands, the sobs tearing from someplace deep inside her.

_Too? _Filing the thought away for later, Neji dropped to his knees beside her and pulled her into his arms.

"I'm so sorry. So sorry. You have no idea." He whispered the words into her hair, hoping that she could hear him, it was impossible to speak any louder past the lump in his throat.

They were so caught up in their own private world, that neither of them noticed the approaching chakra signature, never felt the chakra being molded. Then the front door flew open with a resounding crash. Without thought Neji leapt into action, straightening up, he placed his body between Tenten and the door, automatically moving into a fighting stance and activating his Byakugan. Only then did he finally focus on whoever had kicked the door down.

One moment she'd been on the floor in Neji's arms, the next there was a loud crash and she found herself staring at Neji's legs as he placed himself between her and the source of the noise. Still feeling disoriented by the sudden changes, Tenten felt her blood run cold as she finally registered the presence of another person. _No. Neji, damnit, run, I'll be fine, _she tried to will him to do just that. She could not lose him again, not after she'd only just gotten him back.

Shikamaru stared in disbelief, letting go of his jutsu before he'd even begun. Of all the things he'd expected to find here, of all the scenarios he'd prepared for on his way over, this was not one he'd ever even contemplated.

"Neji?"

_**A/N: **__**I took a lot of liberties with the political situation between a country and its hidden village, but it fit the story, so hopefully no one minds too much! I tried something new with the last bit, shifting from one POV to another rapidly, not sure if it worked out, though. I purposely kept the NejiTen reunion short, maybe that was a mistake … Also, I'm not sure if Neji was in character here. If you hadn't noticed, I'm a bit unsure about this chapter, lol, but anyway, let me know what you think! **_


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews/alerts/favorites! I had a bit of trouble with this chapter – it just didn't want to be written, but I've finally managed to get it out, so pleeaasse R&R and let me know what you think**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**_

_**Chapter 7**_

Shikamaru stood frozen, confusion and disbelief warring with each other in his mind, as he took in the scene before him. Tenten, her face washed with tears, on the ground and Neji, ready for a fight, standing before her. The broken pieces of china and glass littering the entire area.

Balling his fists, he moved in Tenten's direction, only to find his way blocked by Neji. "Tenten, are you okay? Are you hurt?" When she shook her head mutely, he turned on Neji with narrowed eyes. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but get away from her, now."

"No chance, Shikamaru," Neji hissed. Watching the two bristling at each other finally galvanized Tenten into action. She stood, placing herself between them, a hand on each of their chests. Before she had a chance to do more than draw a breath, more people filled her doorway. Three heads swiveled to the newcomers, who were also frozen in shock.

_Damn Shikamaru, _Neji swore inwardly. He could try to fight all four of the chuunin guards, Ino and Shikamaru but that would seriously damage any chance he might have had of changing his status as a missing-nin. Sighing, he deactivated his Byakugan, turning his pearly gaze regretfully on Tenten. This was definitely not going the way he'd planned it. He leaned down, pressed a kiss to her lips and turned to the chuunin. He held his hands up in the traditional gesture for surrender, and his mouth twisted in distaste as he said, "I won't fight you. I know you have to take me in."

Tenten watched in disbelief as Neji gave up. Simply gave in. Let them arrest him and allowed them to march him away. She turned to Shikamaru, who looked no less dumbfounded than she herself must look. They stared at each other for an interminable time before Tenten finally found her voice, "What have you done?"

Shikamaru shook his head, still at a loss for words, as a million and one thoughts chased around in his mind. Why was Neji back, after all this time? What was he after? He opened his mouth, ready to insist that Ino check Tenten over for any injuries, but before he could utter a word, Tenten whirled around and headed for the door.

"Hey, wait." She paid no mind to his words as she wrenched the door open. Sending his shadow across the floor, Shikamaru caught her just before she could disappear from sight. "Tenten, I said wait, damn it! Where are you running to? There's nothing you can do for Neji now – you wouldn't even be allowed near him."

"We have to do something!" Tenten screamed at him, struggling against the hold of his shadow hands. "Why? Ten, he's an S-class missing-nin … a criminal for all we know. He is, most likely, not the same person you knew."

She stilled and Shikamaru cautiously withdrew his shadow, allowing her freedom of movement again. Without turning she said, "Why? How can you, of all people, ask me that? You _know_ why. Because no matter what he's done or how he's changed I love him and if you ever cared for me at all, even a little bit, then you'll help me now."

Tenten stepped through the door and Shikamaru started forward. "Tenten, that's not fair. It's emotional blackmail and you-" She stopped, back still turned, cutting him off. "No, Shika. You are either my friend in this or my enemy. Choose." Sighing in defeat, Shikamaru moved to stand just behind her, "Fine, but you're going to bring the skies crashing down on us unless we plan this properly."

Finally, she turned to face him, her eyes shining with hope and Shikamaru sighed again. "What were you planning? Where were you rushing off to?"

She frowned and, with an air of stating the obvious, she said, "To Hiashi, of course. He'll want to know Neji is back and the Hyuuga clan should have some sort of say in what happens to him now, right?"

"I don't think so. I think the minute he was declared a traitor, the clan washed their hands of him," Shikamaru watched the hope in her eyes fading and hastily added, "but maybe he'll be willing to do something for his nephew. It's worth a try." They both rounded on Ino, who was still standing, frozen, just inside the room. She hastily raised her hands, "Hey, I'm deaf, dumb and blind. Never saw or heard anything." Shikamaru nodded and Tenten shot a grateful look at the other girl as they turned to leave, disappearing into the night.

* * *

Neji sighed in frustration. _How long are they going to leave me cooling my heels?_ The chuunin guards had taken him straight to the Hokage's office, handing him over to the ANBU stationed there with nearly audible sighs of relief. That had been hours ago and still no one had appeared to interrogate him, the only activity had involved the appearance of another ANBU guard, stationed just outside the door.

He'd run over every aspect of the situation a million times, but the sad fact was that it all depended on the Hokage's judgment - on whether his information had any value. Still, he was not going to let the guards see how on edge he really was. He had his pride, after all, and a name to live up to. So, he settled into the lotus position and pretended to meditate, all the while trying to predict the outcome of the looming interview.

Neji became aware of approaching figures and tensed involuntarily. _And so it begins. _The door opened but Neji carefully pretended not to have noticed. Keeping his eyes closed he felt the person, presumably Danzou, moving around him, to the desk in front of the windows. Still, Neji did not open his eyes, did not indicate in any way that he was aware of another presence in the room.

"Please do not insult my intelligence by expecting me to believe that you did not notice my approach, Hyuuga Neji," the Hokage's dry tone gave nothing away – Neji could not begin to judge his mood. He slowly opened his eyes, focusing on the man seated behind the desk. The sixth Hokage watched him expressionlessly as Neji got to his feet.

"That's better. Now, why are you here?" Danzou rested his chin on his folded hands, eyeing Neji speculatively. "Since the, admittedly shocking, news of your return reached me, I have been contemplating that question, and still, I have not come to a conclusion."

Neji gritted his teeth before replying, with as much respect as he could muster, "Danzou-sama, I wish to return to Konoha, to once again be a ninja of the leaf." For a long moment, the Hokage was silent as he examined the statement. "You must know that it is not quite as simple as that. You cannot sweep in here and expect to be joyously welcomed simply because you express the wish to return. But then, that is typical of a Hyuuga – such arrogance."

_Don't rise. _"I realize that the situation is more complicated than that, Hokage-sama, but I am sure that it can be resolved." Neji stared straight ahead, refusing to meet the man's eyes, lest Danzou see the simmering resentment in his expression.

"Ah, of course, I should've known that you would not come empty-handed. I assume that you have something to use as an incentive – something to prove where your loyalties lie." Danzou leaned back in his chair and with a wave of his hand indicated that Neji should take a seat opposite him. "Do not imagine that I'm willing to hear you out for your own sake. Quite the opposite, however, the Hyuuga clan might not take too kindly to it if I simply threw their prodigy in prison without hearing what he has to say and I do not wish to make unnecessary enemies. Bear that in mind as you try to convince me of your sincerity."

Neji settled himself back in the chair, fighting to appear serene, "Try to convince you? Does that mean that regardless of what I say, you will imprison me as soon as I've finished? That would stop the clan from saying anything, gain you information and get rid of me, wouldn't it?"

Danzou gave a dry chuckle, devoid of real amusement. "Such suspicion and mistrust in one so young. All right, would you prefer to lay the terms of our discussion on the table first? I assume you are bargaining for your freedom?"

Neji arched an eyebrow, of course he was suspicious, did the man take him for a complete fool? Calmly he nodded and said, "That would be best. However, I am bargaining for much more than simply my freedom – I want a full pardon."

Danzou's eyebrows rose and he was silent for a moment before replying, "You must be very sure of whatever information you're carrying." Neji remained quiet and eventually the Hokage sighed, "All right. I will agree to that. Should your information be valuable, I will grant you a full pardon. However, should the information you provide prove to be useless there will be no further bargaining of any kind."

Slowly Neji nodded, "Agreed." For a moment they simply stared at each other in silence. Neji wondering if he could trust the man's word, but, with a sense of helplessness that he hated, he had to admit that he did not have a lot of choice - it had always been a risk he was going to have to take. Finally, Neji opened his mouth, ready to divulge what he knew, but the Hokage held up his hand. "Now, that we have established the terms of our discussion, there is one other matter that requires attention before I can hear what you have to say."

_What on earth is he up to now? _Neji wondered but he inclined his head, indicating that Danzou should continue. Danzou nodded to the ANBU guard in the corner and the man moved to open the office door. Neji had to fight with all his might to keep his face expressionless as the door opened to admit his uncle. _Hiashi? What is he doing here?_

Aware that the Hokage was watching his reaction closely, Neji slowly got to his feet and bowed to his uncle. "Hiashi-sama," he said, respectfully. Hiashi swept past him with a nod, stopping in front of Danzou's desk. Neji straightened up, fighting back a grimace. Clearly the clan was not happy with him at all.

Danzou indicated Hiashi should also be seated, and Neji sank back down into his chair. Danzou stared impassively at the two pairs of Hyuuga eyes that were trained unflinchingly on him before he started, "Hiashi-san, your nephew has expressed an interest in returning to Konoha. I am willing to grant him a full pardon should the information he carries prove to be of use. However, it is all pointless if the Hyuuga clan insists on punishment. You and I have already discussed this matter earlier this evening but I felt it necessary to reiterate our decision for nephew. If you please." He motioned for Hiashi to continue.

Without looking at Neji, Hiashi complied, "Hokage-sama, as I indicated to you earlier, the Hyuuga clan will not insist on any punishment should you pardon my nephew. Your word in this matter will be final. However, I do ask that you leave investigation of the situation to us. We will establish why he left, what he has been doing and whether he poses any threat to the village. Of course, our findings will be reported to you and until the investigation concludes I accept full personal responsibility for him. He will not leave the compound unescorted unless it is by your express order."

Neji couldn't stop his eyebrows arching up in surprise. How on earth had Hiashi managed to convince the Hokage to allow that? Danzou seemed to notice Neji's disbelief, "It seems that hidden within the archaic clan laws there is a clause that stipulates that a clan has the final say in whether a missing-nin be allowed to return to the village, should the Hokage be in favor of such an action. Presumably this is to stop the Hokage or the council from being swayed by any bloodline capabilities that a missing-nin's clan would be immune against."

_Well, that's convenient, _Neji thought skeptically, but he held his peace. Danzou turned back to Hiashi. "Thank you. It seems we are all in agreement then. Shall we continue? Naturally, you have my permission to remain, Hiashi-san. It will save your nephew tedious repetition later."

In the short silence that followed, Neji tried to get his thoughts in order. Everything depended on the next few minutes. Taking a deep breath, he started, "About three years ago, I was sent on an infiltration mission. The target was the Jiyuu organization. They were conducting experiments on villagers within the Fire country. We managed to devastate the organization's resources, even if we were unable to obliterate it completely. When I left, I tracked the remainder of the organization and I've spent the last three years in their employ. A man named Naoki is the mastermind behind the medical experiments, and he has managed to perfect a technique whereby fully developed bloodline limits can be transposed into someone whose chakra pathways are dormant – civilians in other words – via DNA manipulation. He has travelled from hidden village to hidden village to accumulate these bloodline limits so he has a vast store of power at his fingertips." Catching the questioning look from his uncle, Neji turned to Hiashi, answering his unspoken question, "I never managed to find out whether they had any of Konoha's bloodline limits. However, I don't think they have the Byakugan. Naoki was much too interested in how it worked. I don't think he'd ever seen anything even remotely like it before."

Turning back to the Hokage, Neji waited for his signal to continue, "It is a recent development that allowed him to transpose the bloodline limits into civilians, so his army isn't at full capacity as yet, but he is fast approaching the point where it would be impossible for any hidden village to stand against him. No matter how strong its ninjas are, they would be overwhelmed by the sheer number of soldiers, and, of course, these are hardly ordinary soldiers – though they barely have control of their powers – they are still dangerous."

Danzou held up his hand and Neji waited as the Hokage formulated his questions, "You speak as if it's a foregone conclusion that the organization intends to attack the hidden villages? What makes you say so?"

"They hate the hidden villages. I was never able to establish whether this was due to the leader's personal prejudices or if there was more to it than that, but it was a well-known fact that they would attack when the army was ready. They were quite open about it." Neji smiled grimly, "They employ missing-nin from all over the world, and thus they are amassing valuable tactical information about their targets as well. I did not come into contact with any other missing-nin from Konoha, but that does not mean that they've never employed one. Naoki seemed quite well informed about our defenses. I can also provide you with detailed descriptions of all those belonging to Jiyuu, as well as their capabilities. If you are agreeable, I will work that into a report, which you can peruse at your leisure."

The silence stretched out interminably until Danzou nodded slowly, "That would be acceptable." Still, Neji remained quiet, waiting for the Hokage to make the next move. "Well, it seems you were quite right in placing such a high price on the information you carried. You will have my signed pardon by mid-morning. You are dismissed."

* * *

Neji managed to hold on to his composure as he and Hiashi bowed to the Hokage and left the building, though inside, he was quaking with relief. "Neji-" They were a couple of blocks away from the Hokage's tower before Hiashi spoke directly to him.

"Hiashi-sama," Neji interrupted his uncle, "what was all that about "archaic clan laws"? It's the first I've ever heard of any such thing." Hiashi smirked slightly, "That would be because, before tonight, no such law existed. I promised my support in council in exchange for allowing the "clan" to investigate your reasons for leaving."

"Why would you do that for me?" Neji asked finally, not quite sure what to make of his uncle's revelations. Hiashi sighed before replying, "Firstly, I owe my brother's son that much. Secondly, did you imagine I would not notice that you'd managed to get rid of your curse seal? I felt the link break, Neji. This was the only way that I could think of to keep that secret between the two of us. If the clan elders found out, then even I would not be able to protect you from their wrath."

Neji started in shock, but before he'd even begun to formulate a reply, Hiashi continued, "I said nothing to the elders and they do not even know that you are back yet. I do not have their consent for the bargains I've struck tonight and the only way that it could ever be forgiven is if they think that I simply acted out of sentiment. With some persuasion I think they will honor my agreement with the Hokage but only if they are under the impression that you can still be controlled."

Neji laughed bitterly, "So, I am still not really free, after all."

Hiashi shook his head slowly, "Don't be so quick to give up, Neji. With time, we will be able to resolve the situation. You are the most talented Hyuuga in many generations and the elders are well aware of that. It will take a while, but once they are persuaded that you are loyal, we will be able to prove to them that the removal of your curse seal was for the benefit of the entire clan."

They had reached the Hyuuga compound and for the first time Hiashi turned to look Neji in the eye, "Your old room is ready. Do not emerge until I send for you," a slight smirk turned the edges of his mouth, "Your friend is waiting for you," he added over his shoulder as he disappeared into the dark house.

_Friend? _Neji watched his uncle walk away, before making his way to his old bedroom. Tiredly, he slid the door open, and with a surge of pleasure his eyes met Tenten's as she jumped up from her perch on the edge of the bed. With a low cry she flew at him and as his arms closed around her, his eyes slid shut, and for the first time, he savored the fact that he had made it this far.


	8. Chapter 8

_**A/N: Thanks so much to everyone who alerted/favorited/reviewed this story. I'm so sorry about the long delay i**__**n updating! Please review and make my day ^_^**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**_

* * *

_**Chapter 8**_

For a long time Neji simply stood, reveling in the fact that he was holding Tenten again, and that everything seemed to be going his way for once in his life. With a sigh he reluctantly released Tenten when she started squirming in his arms.

"Well? Tenten demanded anxiously, "what did the Hokage say?" Neji smirked, he couldn't help it, she looked very un-Tenten-like at the moment: her hair disheveled, and hanging in loose waves down her back. Despite her obvious worry, Neji couldn't help feeling the surge of pleasure that rushed through him at the thought that she'd been distraught over _him._

"He heard me out – in Hiashi's presence, and after making me wait a good few hours I might add – but in the end he agreed to grant me a full pardon," Neji also couldn't help the totally uncharacteristic grin that was popping up every few seconds or so. But, damnit, if he'd ever had a reason to be happy this was it. He was free, or nearly so, and the future was finally something he could contemplate with anticipation instead of dread.

Tenten stared at him disbelievingly, "You're not serious?" her voice whispered over his skin as she moved into his arms again, and with a sense of satisfaction that had him smirking again Neji replied, "I'm completely serious. I had information that he couldn't afford to dismiss or ignore, and so, whether he liked it or not, our dear Hokage had to accept that and abide by the agreement he'd made."

Silently Tenten threw her arms around his neck, holding on to him almost desperately. Though not a sound escaped her Neji could feel her body shaking with repressed emotion. Slowly disentangling himself he took her hand and led her to the bed. Tenten sat at the insistence of his hands on her shoulders, and stared up at him questioningly. He took a deep breath before dropping down to sit beside her. He took her hand again, and started nervously entwining their fingers, obviously searching for words.

In confusion Tenten opened her mouth, only to close it again when she realized that she didn't know what to say. Where to start. For the first time it occurred to her that their separation had done more damage than she'd realized – there were secrets between them now. She was still agonizing over what to tell Neji about the last few years, when he abruptly pulled his hand away. _Oh, god, what does he know? What if someone told him about Shika?_ Guilty color stained her cheeks, and she'd already opened her mouth to start begging for forgiveness when she realized that his abrupt motion had a purpose.

Neji reached up and deliberately started undoing his forehead coverings. His forehead protector rested safely in his back pocket – somehow he'd never been able to take the charade of being a missing-nin as far as scratching a line through the leaf symbol on the metal. Instead he'd pretended to have left it behind, whenever he was queried on its absence. In the agonizing hours that he'd waited for the Hokage, he'd tried again and again to imagine this scene. How could he ever even begin to explain? He'd never been particularly loquacious – especially not where emotion was concerned – so, in the end, he'd decided to simply show her.

The coverings fell to his lap in a pool of dark material and Neji turned to Tenten. Her eyes reflected her obvious confusion, but as her gaze roamed over his familiar features her eyes widened when the realization dawned. Her breathing hitched in her throat, and she raised a trembling hand to his forehead. "Neji…" she breathed, "your curse seal…."

Slowly Neji nodded and let her trace trembling fingers over his unmarked skin. Finally, he couldn't stand the silence anymore, and clearing his throat he said, "It's why I left. When I learned that it was possible – that there was someone out there who could do this … I had to …" Neji drew back as words deserted him again, and stared at the window across from him with unseeing eyes. For the first time it really hit home how much rested on her reaction. Would she be able to forgive him?

Tenten stared at Neji in shocked disbelief. How many times over the years had she imagined reasons for his defection? How often had she tried to convince herself that there was an explanation for his behavior? But never in a million years could she have imagined that _this _was the reason. "Neji-" she started, but before she could say any more Neji interrupted her with a flow of words that absolutely astounded her. It was as if the sense of freedom she knew he must feel had loosened the remarkable control on his emotions as well.

"I always worried about the future. It was fine while we were both only starting out in life, but at some point I knew it wouldn't be enough anymore – what I could give you. Eventually, you'd want it all. Marriage and kids - you'd want a proper family. And you deserve to have it. But how could I give you that? Even assuming that the clan would have allowed me to choose my own path, how could I have brought children into that kind of life? I couldn't do that. I couldn't have sat back with a clear conscience knowing that they would be marked. Controlled and confined like I was. There's so much hatred and unfairness in my family – how could I subject an innocent child to that? And you? I could never do that to you. You deserved so much better than me," Neji took a deep breath and when Tenten opened her mouth, he held up a hand, "Wait. Just let me get this out."

"Even though I knew that the right thing would be to let you go, I couldn't do it. I was selfish, Tenten. I wanted you no matter the cost, so I ignored the guilt and I pushed those thoughts away. I always told myself that those were worries for the future, that for now it was still okay to just enjoy being with you. But the thoughts never went away, and as time went on – and the more we had to hide - the guilt became harder to ignore. Then I found out about the curse seal removal technique and it was like a sign. Fate's way of repaying me, I thought. This was my chance to make myself worthy of you, and so I took it," Neji raised his eyes to hers, "So, I guess, it's not a very good excuse, but it's the truth, and if you can forgive me for the pain I've caused you … I know it won't be easy, and there's still the clan to deal with…." His voice trailed away as he stared at Tenten. _Why isn't she saying anything? _"I love you," he finished quietly, almost desperately, and Tenten felt her heart shatter into a million little pieces. _I'm the one who doesn't deserve you, Neji, _she thought in despair.

* * *

Shikamaru trudged home trying to ignore the pounding headache that had developed in the hours since he'd come upon Neji with Tenten. After a mad rush from Tenten's apartment to the Hyuuga compound, he's spent hours with Hiashi, working out the details of the plan that would grant Neji temporary freedom at the very least. It had been pure luck that Shikamaru had known about an upcoming council meeting in which the Hokage was planning to propose the dissolution of ANBU – with the exception of Root, they would continue to act as the Hokage's personal force. Add to that the fact that the Hyuuga clan rarely agreed with the Hokage, the rest of the plan had flowed easily from there. The biggest problem had been convincing Hiashi that it would be safe to offer his support to the Hokage – the Hyuuga clan head had finally agreed when he'd heard the preposterous proposal the Hokage planned, and he had agreed with Shikamaru that there was no way that the motion would ever pass.

Despite his severe misgivings about allowing Neji his freedom, Shikamaru had been unable to resist the pleading in Tenten's eyes. Perhaps with Neji she would be able to grieve properly for the loss of her child and begin to heal. Shikamaru had recognized instinctively that he would not be able to help her deal with that loss, but maybe Neji would fare better, after all he should have a better understanding of the loss since it was his too. He'd pushed the doubts away and had tried his level best to think of a way out for Neji. Underneath it all was the knowledge that Neji had once been a friend and, try as he might, Shikamaru could not forget the teachings of the Third. So, he'd firmly told himself that Neji had been trying to protect Tenten from him earlier, and that the action showed that he meant no harm. Still, Shikamaru had been unable to quell the nervousness as he'd waited for Hiashi to return. What if he'd exposed Konoha to a new danger by using his, admittedly formidable, intellect to help a criminal?

He'd been unable to hide the sigh of relief when Hiashi had finally stepped into his study. One look at the man's face had assured Shikamaru that their scheme had succeeded, and that, for now, all was well. Sighing, he massaged a temple in the hope of relieving some of the pressure. He'd know it would be troublesome once everyone had seen what he was capable of – everyone always sat back and expected him to come up with a way out of whatever difficulty had cropped up.

For the second time that night, Shikamaru silently let himself into his apartment, careful not to wake Temari, but when he entered his bedroom, she was sitting up in bed, a book open on her lap as she looked at him expectantly. "Long story," he sighed, flopping down next to her. Temari gave him a wry look, "I've got time," she said, "but rest first. I can see you're exhausted."

Shikamaru groaned in pleasure when she coaxed him onto his stomach and started rubbing the tension from his back. Silence reigned until, a long while later, Shikamaru rolled onto his side to face Temari. She sat back and waited for him to get his thoughts in order.

"Neji's back," he finally said, bluntly. "Tenten freaked. I showed up and made matters worse by summoning the chuunin on guard at the Hokage's office. But Neji didn't fight. He let them arrest him, which led to Tenten freaking out even more, so I spent the rest of the night with the Hyuuga clan head working on a plan to keep Neji out of jail. I waited for Hiashi-sama to get back from the meeting - the plan worked by the way, Neji has his freedom - and that's why I was gone for so long," he finished, closing his eyes as he rested his head on his folded arms. Temari said nothing. After a long silence, Shikamaru sighed inwardly and opened his eyes again. It was quite unlike Temari to be so quiet; she usually had a very definite opinion about _everything_. "What's wrong?" he finally asked, when she continued to pleat the sheets covering her legs with nervous fingers. She started and then shook her head slowly, "Nothing. Not really."

Groaning, Shikamaru twisted until he was in a sitting position, "All right. Out with it. Something is bothering you." Temari shot him an unreadable glance before staring at her hands again. "It's just that … I guess, I finally get why you got so upset about Jiku," she said finally, in a low voice.

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed, "What do you mean?" he asked, unsure of where she was heading with this. The last thing he felt like doing was fighting with Temari - even when she was happy she drained his energy. Temari swallowed before continuing, "It's just … I don't think I really _got _how much Tenten meant to you before. I don't know what I thought – you'd been together for a long time - but I-I just didn't equate that with emotional intimacy, you know? But then Ino showed up and you took off like a bat out of hell …. I guess it just brought it home to me," Temari raised her eyes to his, almost defiantly.

He tensed quite against his will, "Are you implying that when Tenten snaps her fingers I go running like a good little lapdog?" Shikamaru asked trying to hold on to his temper. Really, this was the last straw, he did _not _need Temari's contempt at the moment. She shook her head quickly denying his accusation, and, perversely, Shikamaru found himself admiring the way the light played over her golden hair. Shaking his head to dispel the wayward thoughts born of tiredness, he focused on the discussion again. "Then what are you saying, Temari?"

"Just that you obviously care about her and what happens to her, and that I-I didn't like it," she said, cringing. She turned pleading eyes to his, "does that make me a terrible person?" He stared at her incredulously, "Are you saying that you were _jealous_?" Shikamaru asked, at last.

Temari buried her face in her hands, he could see the blush rising up her neck. "Yes, damnit! That's exactly what I'm saying!" she very nearly shrieked the words. Shikamaru couldn't help himself – he laughed. Temari flew at him, and despite the pillow she aimed at every inch of him she could reach, he couldn't stop laughing. "No, Temari, stop. I'm sorry! I'm sorry, okay?" he finally gasped.

She sat back, still clutching the pillow, and looking put out. Shikamaru raised his hands to signify his surrender. "It doesn't make you a bad person, Mari," he said gently, taking her hand. "It makes you a normal person, but, I assure you, you have nothing to be jealous of. You're not jealous of Chouji, right? Well, you have no more reason to be jealous of Tenten."

Their eyes met and Temari said dryly, "You never had a sexual relationship with Chouji." Shikamaru shuddered at the thought, even if his tastes had run in that direction, Chouji was like a brother, "No," he agreed, "but that's how I view Tenten. Whatever relationship we had before, that's how I think of her now."

Temari sighed, "It's just that it feels like she has a part of you that I can never have." Shikamaru drew her into his arms, settling himself more comfortably against the headboard, "I know how you feel. But this is where trust enters into it, doesn't it?" Temari sighed again but remained silent as she nestled into his arms. Sleep had nearly claimed Shikamaru when she spoke again, "The worst part of it was the knowledge that if you hadn't cared about her, if you hadn't gone to help her, you wouldn't have been the man you are and I wouldn't have loved you nearly as much as I do."

"Love you, too," he murmured as he drifted off to a contented sleep.

* * *

Neji swallowed hard. Tenten had been silent for far too long after his confessions. Did that mean that she couldn't forgive him, that she didn't love him anymore? Everything inside him turned cold with that thought. Tenten moved, jolting him back to the present. Slowly she knelt up on the bed, and turning to face him she cupped his face in cold hands. "I love you, Neji. I'm not saying that I'm not angry at you for leaving like you did, but I understand why you did it. I wish you'd told me, but now that I know what happened, I can accept it. I think I already forgave you a long time ago – I never could stay angry at you for very long," she smiled tremulously, "But no matter what you did, I could never stop loving you. I need you to know that," Tenten stared intently into his eyes, "I need you to know that no matter what happens nothing could ever change how I feel about you."

Breathing a silent thank you to the heavens Neji gathered Tenten into his arms. Hesitantly he lowered his head until their lips met in a soft, almost chaste kiss. Her lips trembled at his touch and slowly she opened her mouth, allowing his tongue to sweep inside. Feeling the wetness slide down her cheeks, Neji lifted his hands to cup her face, his thumbs brushing the tears away as his mouth moved persuasively over hers. With a soft moan, Tenten wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing closer to deepen the kiss. Neji growled low in his throat as the pleasure washed over his senses. It had been far too long since he'd held Tenten like this – kissed her like this – and he could feel his control slipping as his hands slid slowly down her arms to hold her hips. His tongue coiled sensuously against hers and for the first time in many years Neji yielded his control to his desires. Breaking the kiss for breath, he used the momentary respite from the heady feeling to flip Tenten onto her back.

Tenten gasped when she suddenly found herself lying on her back with Neji hovering over her, his pearlescent eyes glazed over with passion. Before she'd found the will to stop him – they still had so many things to talk about – he'd swooped down for another kiss and his hair, his glorious, silky hair, swept around her, and she found herself unable to resist the temptation to hide in the cocoon it created, sheltering her from everything unpleasant. _Just one kiss, _she thought defensively when her conscience tried to bring her back to sanity, _I haven't had this in so long. _

Neji's mouth left hers to trail a blazing path down her neck, and Tenten arched into his touch involuntarily, baring her skin in a blatant invitation. Through the haze of sensation his mouth induced, Tenten vaguely heard his voice whispering against her skin in between kisses. "Oh, god, Ten, you have no idea how much I missed you. Missed this," and then, "We can finally have it all now. I'll make you happy, anything you want - it's yours." She couldn't help her toes curling with pleasure at the sound of his usually smooth tenor deepening with emotion and desire, as he whispered promises along her skin. "We'll buy a house of our own. We'll do whatever we want – they can't control me anymore." The words, meant to bring joy, were like a dash of cold water, instead. Abruptly, Tenten was brought back to the present – and the problems that still lay unresolved. Wonderful as the future Neji painted sounded, how could they have that if she was still hiding things from him? Things he deserved to know – needed to know. He had a right to know it all before he committed himself to a future with her after all.

"Neji," she gasped, when his hand slid under the hem of her shirt to start tracing patterns on the bare skin of her stomach, "Neji, you have – we have … to stop," she finally managed to get the words out, though they lacked the forcefulness she'd intended. Neji paid her no heed, his lips continued to explore every bit of her flesh that his hands managed to uncover, despite her twisting and turning as she tried to stop the headlong rush into passion. "Don't worry. No one will have their Byakugan activated at this time of night – I doubt anyone's still awake," he whispered as he trailed back up to capture her mouth in another drugging kiss.

Tenten struggled to keep her thoughts in order, as her body and mind responded to his caresses. "No, I … didn't mean … that," the last word ended in a moan when he traced the shell of her ear with his teeth. Fighting against the languorous desire spreading through her with all her might, Tenten pushed at Neji's chest but he refused to budge, instead he licked a line down to the hollow of her throat, sucking softly on the skin once he'd reached his destination, "Mmmm …. Ah … no, Neji, stop," Tenten protested weakly. _You have to stop this RIGHT NOW, _and without thought, she found herself blurting out the very words she'd agonized over for hours now. "Neji, I was pregnant when you left."

It took a moment for the words to register in Neji's passion-filled mind but once her words had sunk into his consciousness he froze. His mouth stilled against her throat, and he could feel her pulse jumping against his lips when she swallowed nervously. "What?" he whispered, "what did you say?"

Tenten closed her eyes as she fought against the fear flooding her when Neji's body tensed against her. "I-I was pregnant when you left," she repeated obediently, not knowing what else to say. Deliberately Neji levered himself off of her. Fixing her with that cold, piercing stare she knew so well, he said softly, "Explain." Tenten pushed herself into a sitting position, and wrapped her arms around her knees; she hated that cold, distant look. "There's nothing to explain, really. I was pregnant, I'd only found out for sure the day you left. I tried to tell you, but then you were gone, and it was too late."

Neji leaned forward, his head in his hands, his hair hiding him from her gaze, "I-we … have a child?" he muttered, running his hands through his hair in a gesture of agitation. Tenten felt her heart twisting with the familiar pain as she said softly, "No, Neji. I-I miscarried," she choked on the last word, and suddenly she was unable to hold back the years of pain, of dealing with it all alone. Shikamaru had helped, had been her saving grace, but even once she'd told him about the baby, it hadn't eased the pain. Telling Neji was the hardest thing she'd ever done but at the same time she felt like a huge burden had been lifted. As always, she instinctively relied on Neji's strength to carry her through.

Not wanting Neji to see the tears spilling down her cheeks, Tenten buried her head in her knees. "I'm sorry, Neji. I'm so sorry," she cried. Suddenly, she felt herself being lifted and for the second time that evening she found herself on Neji's lap, as he stroked comforting circles down her back. Tenten buried her face in his neck and finally she found she was able to let go of the pain she'd been carrying with her for years – with a simple gesture of comfort Neji had done what no one else could do for her.

When she finally calmed down, Neji tilted her chin up and said, almost formally, "I'm sorry, Tenten. It's my fault and you should not have had to blame yourself for so long." Tenten sighed when she saw the sadness in his eyes – as always Neji was entirely unable to share his pain – he took the blame to help him justify what he was feeling. But she was damned if she was going to allow him to do that this time. She'd never planned on telling him about Danzou and her months of captivity – some things were better left forgotten. Tenten had known he would react like this and she was not about to add to the guilt she knew he was struggling to deal with. "No, Neji. It's no one's fault. It's just nature's way, there's nothing anyone could've done."

Stubbornly, Neji shook his head, "I left. I should've been here to take care of you. I'm to blame." Impatiently Tenten grabbed his hair, forcing him to look her in the eye, "Neji. I don't blame you. Neither should you. It just wasn't meant to be," in her frustration, in wanting to get through to him so damn _badly _Tenten didn't really pay attention to her words, "Shikamaru helped me see that. He didn't judge me – didn't think it was my fault-" before she could finish her sentence something about Neji's expression warned her that she'd said something she shouldn't have. Frantically she tried to recall what she'd just said. _Damnit, I'm so used to Shika, his name just sort of naturally flows into my conversation. _

Slowly Neji disentangled her hands from his hair and placed her back on the bed. "Does everyone know about it?" he asked sharply. Tenten cringed, this was the part she'd dreaded most. Steeling herself against the inevitable loss once she'd told him this last piece of the years he'd missed, Tenten took a deep breath. Her gaze dropped from his piercing eyes, as the guilt rushed through her and flooded her cheeks with color, "N-no. Just Shika," she whispered in shame, unable to look at the reaction her words caused.

"And, pray tell, why does _Shika _know, when no one else does?" Neji's tone was sarcastic but Tenten knew him well enough to hear the resentment simmering in the words. She winced at the thoughtless mistake in shortening Shikamaru's name. Neji was making her nervous – her mistakes were piling up. This was not how she imagined telling him at all. "We-well, we've sort of …grown close … while you were gone," she was relieved to finally be able to tell the whole truth when she added, "He's a good friend, Neji. He has been a good friend to me for the last few years."

Neji's eyes narrowed as he stared at Tenten - something was still missing. He could see it in her hunched posture, as if she wanted to protect herself from an attack. _What could she still be hiding? What more could there possibly be? _Neji thought hollowly. Methodically he sifted through her words, and the undertones that had been in her voice. The answer bloomed in his mind like an unexpected punch to the gut, and Neji nearly gasped for breath when he realized the truth she'd been hiding. "You … and Shikamaru?" he was proud of his emotionless tone, though how in the hell he'd managed to keep inflection from his voice he would never know. "And you still nearly let me-" abruptly he cut off the words before the anger became impossible to control. Right now he just wanted to understand.

Tenten shivered at the ice that covered Neji's voice once he'd put two and two together. "It's not like that. Not anymore. It's been over for months now. And it was never really-" she bit her lip. How could she possibly explain what Shikamaru had meant to her without alienating Neji totally? Tenten took a deep breath and tried again, "It was never more than comfort. I don't love him. Not in that way. I never did. I was just so … at a loss … and Shikamaru helped. He didn't expect anything from me and I didn't have to pretend. It was over long before it began if you want to know the truth," she finished helplessly.

It was only with great willpower that Neji managed to keep from wincing at her words. Images of her with Shikamaru spun sickeningly in his mind, and, now, it finally made sense – why Shikamaru had come storming into Tenten's apartment earlier, and his oddly protective manner towards her. Neji clenched his fists to keep from lashing out. "When? How long?" he ground out finally.

"About a year after you left," Tenten admitted quietly, "and I broke it off a few months ago because he deserved better than someone who was still in love with another," she sat forward and gazed pleadingly at him, "Neji, please, you have to believe me. I love you. Only you. That never changed."

Neji whirled and strode to the window, fighting against the chakra that wanted to burst from his hands, fighting against the urge to go and kill Shikamaru. Despite the fact that Tenten claimed that he'd been there for her Neji could imagine just how vulnerable she'd been after he'd left and she lost the baby, and he couldn't help but feel that Shikamaru had taken advantage of that vulnerability. _And who left her vulnerable and alone in the first place? _His conscience spoke up, silencing the unthinking jealousy and rage. Neji swallowed hard. There really was no denying it. How could he blame her for taking comfort where it was offered? It was his fault she'd needed comfort in the first place.

From her perch on the bed Tenten watched the set of Neji's shoulders as he struggled with his thoughts. Fear swirled her stomach in sickening circles and every fiber of her ached to go and smooth the hurt away but instinctively she realized that Neji did not want to be touched at the moment. Finally his head came up and Tenten felt her nerves jumping. Slowly Neji turned and made his way to where she sat, frozen in fear. Bending down, he crouched in front of her, and took her cold, trembling hands in his own. "Tenten, I can understand why you did what you did. I don't blame you for it. I'm sorry for the mess I made," his voice was uncharacteristically gentle. Neji straightened from his crouched position and Tenten felt all her hope flowing away when his hands withdrew from hers and he retreated across the room again. She read the distance in his eyes, in his body, and knew that he was withdrawing from her and oh, how that hurt. But she had no one to blame but herself. Tenten swallowed repeatedly, refusing to give in to the threatening tears. Maddeningly Neji looked totally calm as he finished what he wanted to say, "I would like to be alone now, if you don't mind. We'll talk tomorrow, once emotions have settled a bit."

She stood to leave, what else could she do? Looking over her shoulder for a last glance of Neji, she felt her heart contract as she committed him to memory – the way his hair flowed over his shoulders, his eyes, his mouth – she couldn't shake the sinking feeling that this might very well be the last time she would ever see him, after all there was nothing to stop him from simply taking off again. Taking a hold of her courage Tenten turned and slid the door open, "I'm so sorry, Neji. I betrayed your trust and what we had and I can never make that up to you. But, if you can forgive me, I swear I'll try," she took a deep breath as the tears threatened to choke her and finished in a rush, "I love you, no matter what you decide, and I'll respect whatever decision you come to." Then she took that final step - slid his door shut behind her, and quickly made her way out of the house. Tenten reached her apartment in record time, and once she shut the door on the world she could finally give in to the emotions that had been swirling in her all night. She threw herself on her bed and sobbed unashamedly until the tears gave way to exhaustion and she fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

_**A/N: Thanks so much to everyone who read/reviewed/alerted/favorited! I'm sorry it's taking me so long to update, I'm just having a bit of trouble getting into Cage of Shadows at the moment. Anyway, thanks for sticking it out with me, and while this chapter doesn't really have much in terms of actual events, it was necessary for character development and the broad plot-line, so I hope you enjoy it regardless! Let me know what you thought - as always reviews are greatly appreciated.**_

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto (for which we are all blatantly thankful ^_^)_**

* * *

_**Chapter 9**_

Neji paced back and forth across his bedroom, feeling nothing at all like himself. His usual calm had completely deserted him – not even meditation had helped to restore his equilibrium. For the millionth time he paused in front of the window to stare outside. The blackness of night was slowly giving way to dawn but time was passing much too slowly to suit him. _Fuck it, _he thought, wincing at the uncharacteristic curse – even if it was only in his own head, it brought home exactly how unsettled he was feeling – he'd always prided himself on being able to express his thoughts intelligently, without having to resort to crude language to get his point across. But, after a sleepless night of mulling over everything Tenten had revealed, he found he was just too fed up with his own thoughts to care. He had to do something. Now.

Abruptly he turned and headed for the door. Hiashi had told him to stay put but he was damned if he was going to spend another second in here waiting for the world to catch up with him. Somewhere in the wee hours of the morning he'd finally come to the conclusion that he'd been rather idealistic and impetuous in showing up and thinking that everything would turn out in his favor simply because he wanted it to. _But, damnit, don't I deserve to have something working out for me for once? _He took a deep breath. No, he didn't hold it against Tenten – she'd done what she needed to do – but that realization had done nothing to still the anger and jealousy whirling inside him. No matter how unfair it was deep down he couldn't help feeling resentful at the thought that while he'd been suffering through the worst kinds of experiences – for her! – she'd blithely moved on.

Still, once he'd passed through the entire gamut of emotions that had been awakened by Tenten's revelations – the sadness for the loss of his child, the disbelief, the anger, the hurt over Tenten's betrayal – he'd come to the conclusion that there was only one thing left for him to do. No matter what she had done it didn't change the fact that he loved her. So, for her sake, he was prepared to do the only thing he could for her. His presence in her life had only ever brought her pain. Hadn't he always known that she deserved far better? It wasn't her fault that he'd been too late in changing his life so that she would fit more comfortably.

The battle between wanting to be fair and wanting to be selfish had raged for hours until at last he could lie to himself no more. The cost to his pride would be nothing compared to her unhappiness. Once his pride had been all he'd had – all he could really call his own, the only thing they couldn't take – but it had been with a shock that Neji had realized that he would willingly sacrifice his pride a hundred times over if it made Tenten happy. So, there had been nothing else for it, he had to do the honorable thing, the _right _thing, and step aside like a gentleman. Even if every fiber of his being screamed at him to fight, to kill, to do anything and everything he had to do to keep that which was his, he knew he couldn't do that to Tenten. He didn't want to place her in a position where she had to choose…

He shook his head to dispel the thoughts. The decision had been made, and he knew what he had to do. Mulling on the unfairness of it all would help no one. He was long past screaming his rage at the uncaring stars, long past trying to change what couldn't be changed, but he _could_ change the way he reacted to whatever destiny threw at him, and so he would have to clamp down on the anger before he reached his destination. Neji took a deep breath and deliberately emptied his mind. He ran silently out of the Hyuuga compound, keeping to the shadows as much as possible – all the while concentrating only on where he was going. Trying not to think of the inevitable conclusion he was hurtling towards.

* * *

The sound of someone trying to break down his door slowly brought Shikamaru back to consciousness. _What now? _he thought, groaning as he turned and buried his head in the pillows. It was still dark! The rest of the village seemed quiet so it couldn't be an attack. Shikamaru briefly considered his options. Maybe if he ignored it, whoever it was would go away and take their problem to someone else. Temari moaned, and turned over, nestling closer to Shikamaru, and, abruptly he was fully awake as he realized that he could not ignore them. What if they thought something was wrong and really broke down the door? Temari couldn't afford to be found here with him.

With a deep sigh, he levered himself up and out of bed, grabbing a shirt from the floor as he went. "All right, all right. I'm coming," he grumbled when the knocking intensified. Rubbing a hand through his disheveled hair, he yanked the door open, and nearly closed it again when he found himself face to face with none other than Hyuuga Neji.

"Ah, no, damnit. I've saved your ass enough for one day. It's late, or early, I really don't care which, and you can take your problems to someone else if it really can't wait till a reasonable time of day," Shikamaru growled, his thoughts already back on his warm bed and Temari's warmer body.

"I don't require your _help_," Neji snarled, obviously stung by Shikamaru's assumptions. "I need to talk to you, and it really can't wait." Not even waiting for Shikamaru to agree, Neji pushed the door open and let himself in. In bemusement Shikamaru slowly closed the door as Neji strode purposefully to the living area. He eyed Neji warily as he followed, and sat down, waiting expectantly. He had thought the old Neji had been banished in the aftermath of the battle against Naruto in the Chuunin exams – but the man prowling through his living room, like an angry tiger, had more of the volatile qualities of that younger Neji than he did the cool composure Shikamaru had come to expect from the older model.

Finally, Shikamaru lost patience with the entire situation – why he had ever considered a thank you might be forthcoming was beyone him - and gave up on waiting for Neji to speak first, "What did you want, Neji? Not to be rude, but I have better things to do at this time of day, so if you don't mind getting to the point I would really appreciate it." Neji whirled around, looking shocked. _Probably not used to anyone daring to use that tone with the almighty Hyuuga Neji, _Shikamaru thought, faintly amused.

Neji shook his head, and finally spoke, his calm tone completely at odds with the leashed aggression of his body, "I apologize. I should not have come this early, but I need to get things in order before everything goes too far." Shikamaru's eyes narrowed as he examined the cryptic words. Why did it sound as if Neji was planning to take off again? Reserving judgment for now, Shikamaru slowly said, "What do you mean 'goes too far'?"

Neji lowered himself onto the couch opposite Shikamaru, and stared intently at the carpet. "I spoke to Tenten last night. She told me everything." Shikamaru nearly groaned. Great, now he had to deal with jealousy too. He was faintly disappointed in Neji. _Never would've taken you to be the type for that kind of scene, _Shikamaru thought, steeling himself. "And what does that have to do with me?" he asked finally.

The long brown hair swung as Neji jerked his head up, his eyes flashing with some indefinable emotion, quickly reigned in. "It has everything to do with you, since I've come here to ask you to take care of her." Neji's tone was completely without inflection, but Shikamaru couldn't stop his eyebrows rising in surprise. _Okay, never saw that one coming. _"Excuse me?" he asked, nearly choking.

Impatiently, Neji shook his hair back, "You heard me. Tenten told me about your … relationship …. and I've decided to not stand in the way of that. She claims it was over months ago but you wouldn't have come rushing to help her last night if it was totally done between the two of you." Shikamaru was hard pressed to keep his mouth from swinging open in astonishment but Neji continued wryly, "Also, once I thought it through, it was fairly obvious that you'd had a hand in the plan Hiashi used to keep me from being summarily imprisoned. And I don't imagine that you were doing it to help _me_. So, putting two and two together wasn't difficult. I realize now that I was unreasonable in my expectations and if Tenten is happy with you then so be it."

Shikamaru hastily gathered his scattered thoughts, and nearly groaned, for an intelligent guy Neji was acting like a prize idiot. "You put two and two together, huh?" he asked dryly, "the only problem is you put them together and got five. It's not like that with me and Tenten. Haven't you ever heard of the concept of friendship?" he couldn't help lacing his last words with sarcasm, it wasn't every day that the acclaimed Hyuuga prodigy was at a loss, and he couldn't keep himself from taking advantage of that fact.

Looking startled, Neji stared at Shikamaru for a minute before replying uncertainly, "What do you mean? I thought …" Shikamaru sighed, "And I'm telling you that you thought wrong. Tenten told you the truth – yes, we did have a relationship. But it wasn't a deep romance or anything. She never once told me she loved me, Neji, if that's what's bothering you. You know why? Because she _doesn't love me that way. _She's only ever loved you. She needed a shoulder to cry on and it just got out of hand, and then neither of us had the will to deal with that so it just sort of dragged on." Shikamaru took a deep breath, holding up a hand to stop Neji when the other opened his mouth to argue. "Tenten is my friend, and I care about her and that's the only reason I helped her last night. No ulterior motive intended. And I can't believe that, if she told you the truth, you could ever believe that she would love anyone but you."

By now Neji looked thoroughly confused. This was not going at all as planned. Lately it seemed that everything he tried to do boomeranged on him, and he _hated _it. Hated feeling unsure and insecure. "What are you getting at?" he asked.

Shikamaru resisted the urge to smack Neji upside the head to knock some sense into him. He took a deep breath and held hard to his patience, "Neji, she endured everything – your defection, her captivity, even the miscarriage – without ever blaming you. She never once hated you for anything, no matter that the temptation must've been there. Instead, she clung faithfully to the idea that you'd had your reasons and that you would come back one day-"

"Captivity? What are you talking about?" Neji interrupted, his eyes narrowed. _Shit. Guess Tenten left that part out. Smart girl. _Shikamaru winced, he couldn't help it, "Um, you mean you don't know?" he asked, stalling for time. _Think, damnit, think._ Neji's eyes narrowed even further if that was possible, "No, I don't. Care to fill me in?" he said, in a low voice, clearly already catching on to the fact that he would not like what he was about to hear. Suddenly, Shikamaru had had enough. This wasn't his problem, damnit! And he was quite sure that he did not deserve to be looked at as if it was his fault that Tenten had been held captive! Maybe Neji _did _need to hear this, needed to see beyond his own needs and wants for a change – needed to realize that his actions affected others.

"When you left – the Hokage felt that Tenten knew more than she let on and so he held her for questioning for a couple of months. I didn't know about it so don't look at me like I should've done something. No one knew. This was before Tenten and I grew close and all anyone knew at the time was what the Hokage wanted us to – that Tenten needed medical care and rest. Of course we were all suspicious but what could we do? They didn't torture her, just questioned her relentlessly." Shikamaru nearly stopped his story right there when he caught sight of the horrified look on Neji's face, but then he ruthlessly suppressed the sympathy and finished the sorry tale, "That's what caused the miscarriage – the strain of being questioned, of worrying about herself, her child - and about you."

Shikamaru bit his lip – already he regretted telling Neji. It had been Tenten's secret to tell, not his, and the horrified look in Neji's eyes wasn't fading. If anything, Neji looked as if he might be sick. Uncomfortably Shikamaru wondered how to go about offering his sympathy. Knowing Neji, he wouldn't appreciate anyone being privy to his moment of weakness, but Shikamaru opened his mouth regardless, "Neji. I'm sorry." His mouth closed with a snap when he found he didn't know what else to say.

At Shikamaru's last words Neji seemed to jerk himself back from his thoughts. He shook his head, as if confused, and Shikamaru had to strain to make out the words he whispered, "No, I'm the one who should be sorry. God, I'm so very sorry." Neji buried his face in his hands as Shikamaru shifted uncomfortably. "Don't tell me," Shikamaru said at last, "tell Tenten," he finished softly.

For a long time they sat in silence, each absorbed in his own dark thoughts. Then the muffled sounds from the direction of the bedroom reminded Shikamaru that he had every reason to try and get rid of Neji as quickly as possible. Tensing involuntarily, hoping against hope that Neji was too caught up in his own thoughts to have noticed, and praying that Temari would be awake enough to realize that someone else was in the apartment; Shikamaru had to fight to appear natural as he cleared his throat.

Before he'd so much as opened his mouth to urge Neji to be on his way, Temari came stumbling out of the bedroom. Rubbing sleep from her eyes, her hair a loose mass around her shoulders. And most damning of all, dressed only in one of Shikamaru's shirts. Shikamaru closed his eyes as he cursed inwardly. "Shika, when are you-" Temari's words were bitten off when she caught sight of Neji hunched over on the couch.

Neji looked between Shikamaru and Temari, raising his eyebrows, "Aren't you married?" he said, after a long, uncomfortable silence. Color flooded Temari's face but she raised her chin defiantly, "You're well-informed for a missing-nin," she retorted. Neji's eyebrows rose even further and he shot Shikamaru a 'rather-you-than-me' look before he returned coolly, "I wasn't living under a rock." Then he shrugged, as if he really didn't care one way or the other why Temari was half-dressed and in Shikamaru's bedroom just before dawn. Gratefully Shikamaru reflected that if they'd had to get caught, they could thank their lucky starts that it had been Neji. He really didn't care, and he wouldn't say anything. Quite apart from anything else, Neji owed him big time.

Neji got to his feet, and turning to Shikamaru he said, "Thank you. For everything." The obvious sincerity in his voice caught Shikamaru off guard, and not knowing how to respond to such heartfelt thanks, he merely nodded. Neji made his way to the door but before he'd opened it, he turned back to face Temari and Shikamaru who were still frozen in place. "There's someone at the door," Neji stated, calmly. Shikamaru slowly got to his feet and made his way over. _What else could possibly go wrong now? _He was so incredibly tired.

Shikamaru reached the door and Neji stood back so he could open it. The gap was just big enough for him to make out the long-hated features of the Wind Country's feudal lord, Jiku. Temari's husband.

"I'm looking for my wife," Jiku said, with no hint of a greeting. "On arrival at the Hokage's office they informed me that you would be able to assist in the search for her hotel." A slight pause while Jiku swept a derogatory glance over Shikamaru's disheveled appearance. "You _are _Nara Shikamaru?"

Wildly, Shikamaru wracked his thoughts. How in the hell were they going to get out of this one? "And you are?" he asked, finally, stalling would work as well as anything. Behind him he was aware of Neji motioning Temari to go back into the bedroom. She'd frozen in shock on hearing her husband's voice. Finally Neji had no choice but to grab her by the elbow and propel her out of sight.

"Who am I? I am Jiku, feudal lord of the Wind country and Temari of the Sand's husband," the man finally responded, looking highly affronted.

"Well, I am very sorry but it seems you have made a wasted journey. I do not know where your wife is staying but should I run into her I will be sure to tell her that you are here and looking for her." It took everything Shikamaru had to keep his tone polite.

Jiku sniffed, looking highly put out, as he recognized the dismissal in Shikamaru's words, and he said, haughtily, "See that you do find her, and make sure to tell her that I have accompanied her brother, the Kazekage, to the Hidden Leaf for the signing of a new treaty and that we will depart from here for the progress to save time, so she should come to the Hokage's office fully prepared." Without anything further, Jiku turned and walked away in a billow of robes.

Slowly Shikamaru closed the door. Not quite dawn yet and everything that could possibly go wrong had already caught up with him. He stared at Neji, a silent sentinel in front of his bedroom door, what on earth was he to do now? Neji cleared his throat to get Shikamaru's attention. "That man - I know him. He has connections with the outlaw organization I worked for," Neji announced into the silence.


	10. Chapter 10

_**A/N: Thank you so much for your patience! The chapter is finally here – don't worry I'm just as amazed. I'm fairly sure that there's a ton of stuff that can be done to improve this chapter but meh, at least it's written ^^ Don't forget to leave me a review – I could do with some con-crit!**_

_**Warnings: Some lemony stuff later in the chapter – skip if you don't like. Don't say I didn't warn you!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters or places used in this story**_

* * *

_**Chapter 10**_

Shikamaru stared at Neji, a slight frown drawing his brows together. "What do you mean you know him?" he asked, already trying to think through the implications of Neji's statement. Neji stepped away from the door, the crashes and muffled cursing from inside clearly showing that Temari had heard the conversation between her husband and Shikamaru.

"I mean, I saw him in the compound once," Neji shrugged, "he was leaving as I was entering. I got a good look at him – I'm not mistaken. The man at your door just now was the same man. He had business to conduct with the leader of the organization, so I'm assuming his links with them are less than innocent."

Slowly Shikamaru made his way to the couch, dropping down in an absentminded way, his hands automatically forming his 'thinking pose'.

"So," he mused, "we've got a feudal lord that's lining his own pocket on the side."

Neji cleared his throat, "Not exactly, I think it's worse than that. The organization I worked for was creating an army of civilians implanted with unstable shinobi powers …"

His voice trailed off as the two men stared hard at each other.

Shikamaru jumped to his feet, "So, you think he's in on that? What does a feudal lord want with an army of civilians with powers they can't control? Unless…" he stared at Neji in silent horror. The Hyuuga's expression did not reflect his troubled thoughts, as always, but Shikamaru could see the faint lines of worry tightening around his eyes and mouth.

Neji nodded slowly, "Yes, that's what I'm wondering."

The door opened and a frantic-looking Temari emerged fully dressed and still tying her hair up into her customary four ponytails.

"What?" she asked, coming to a halt when she noticed the tension in the air, and the worry on Shikamaru's face.

Slowly both men turned to look at her. Shikamaru cleared his throat, "What do you know about your husband's dealings as feudal lord? His relationship with Gaara in particular?"

Temari stared at him in confusion, clearly wondering why he was asking such questions when time was of the essence in ensuring that they didn't get caught.

"I- what? Not much. He's not Gaara's biggest fan, but I guess they get along fairly well considering that Gaara has the more powerful position."

Neji made a jerky movement toward the door, and Shikamaru reached out to grab his arm.

"Wait, it proves nothing," he tried to reason.

Neji stopped and turned to Shikamaru with a skeptical expression darkening his features.

"It's good enough for me – and if the Land of Wind is connected with outlawed shinobi, then what's to say that there aren't other Feudal lords with the same idea? Kami knows, no one could blame the Fire Country's Feudal Lord for not being particularly fond of Danzou!"

Shikamaru shook his head again, "But, it still proves nothing! All we know is that Jiku visited your organization and that said organization is in the business of armies-implanted-with-powers," he argued without real conviction – his gut was telling him that they were on to something too.

Neji snorted, "Fine, that's what we _know_. What do you _think_, then?"

The impatience in his voice was badly concealed and Shikamaru ran a tired hand over his face again, ignoring Temari's insistent looks. Why did everyone have to have so much energy all the time?

"I think that the Wind Country's feudal lord is planning on trying to overthrow the shinobi village with an army of very dangerous civilians," he admitted reluctantly.

* * *

Neji worried his lower lip between his teeth as he leapt from roof to roof, keeping pace with Shikamaru just slightly ahead of him. What they'd uncovered did not bode well – for anyone involved. They'd quickly come to the conclusion that the only chance they had of saving Suna and Konoha – possibly all the shinobi villages – was to get Gaara convinced as quickly as possible. Kami knew they had less than no chance of convincing Danzou of their findings and should they, by some miraculous means, actually manage to convince the Hokage, there was no telling what the man would do, or even if he'd do anything at all. No, Gaara was by far the better bet.

Shikamaru had quickly sent Temari ahead, to meet her husband as requested, but also to get her brother alone. The fewer people who knew of their suspicions the better. Despite the very real threat to his home – a place he'd sworn to protect with his life if necessary – Neji found that he only really cared about getting to Tenten. To explain? To ask for her forgiveness? He wasn't really sure. But the threat of death loomed over their heads and nothing seemed to matter quite as much as making sure that Tenten knew that he loved her, no matter what either of them had done.

They reached a crossroads and both men drew to a halt. Shikamaru waved a hand in the direction of the Hyuuga compound.

"Last time I checked, you weren't supposed to be running around without permission. Go. I'll handle Gaara and Danzou."

Neji grimaced but there was too much truth in Shikamaru's words to be ignored – he'd come too far to ruin it all now. With a slight inclination of his head Neji turned, aware of Shikamaru rushing off in the opposite direction behind him. Rooftop after rooftop disappeared beneath his sandaled feet but his mind was disengaged from the actions his body performed. A mere block from the Hyuuga compound Neji abruptly turned to the right. He had to see Tenten. No matter what the risk.

* * *

The Hokage's office was crowded with people. The Kazekage and his retinue mingled with Konoha council members and Shikamaru took a deep breath before entering the office proper. Luckily the ANBU stationed outside had taken one look at his serious expression, listened quietly to his explanation that it was of the utmost importance that he speak to the Hokage, and let him inside without argument.

Temari was speaking quietly to Gaara, her husband had engaged Danzou in a discussion, and Shikamaru could see the way the Kazekage's expression changed, a slight frown drawing lines on his forehead. He stared at his sister for a long moment before he nodded once. Temari turned and her gaze met Shikamaru's. He jerked his head in the direction of the hallway and she nodded imperceptibly. From the corner of his eye, as he turned to exit the room, Shikamaru could see Temari tugging on Gaara's sleeve but then he was outside and he quickly made his way to the end of the hallway, and the stairs that led to the roof.

Shikamaru headed for the railing, straining his senses to try and ascertain if any chakra signatures where close enough for them to overhear his explanation to the Kazekage. There was a rustle of robes, the sound of sand swirling in the wind – sounds that made him think of blazing suns and desert – and Shikamaru turned slowly to face Temari's brother.

The Kazekage was expressionless as always, but the mere fact that he had come up here at all gave Shikamaru hope that maybe they weren't too late – maybe there was still something that could be done.

"Kazekage-sama," Shikamaru said, bowing slightly.

Gaara merely inclined his head and waited silently for Shikamaru to get to the point. Shikamaru turned to face the breath-taking view of Konoha that spread below him – so peaceful, so serene – and determination ran through him. Safeguarding the peace below relied on his explanation to Gaara, and unconsciously his hands formed his thinking pose as he rested his elbows on the railing.

"I don't know what Temari-san has told you," he began, careful to keep any indication of intimacy with the Kazekage's sister from his voice. To his surprise Gaara replied in that slow, careful way of his.

"She told me enough for me to realize that what you have to say may be of grave importance for the shinobi villages."

Shikamaru nodded and quickly got his thoughts in order.

"Through a former Konoha missing-nin we have gained some information about an outlaw organization that gave us quite a bit of trouble a few years ago. We thought them destroyed but it has now come to light that they've been quietly amassing an army. An army implanted with unstable shinobi powers. It seems that one of the leaders is quite a gifted medical-nin and he's somehow developed a technique that allows him to transpose bloodline limits into ordinary citizens. Thus his army is potentially limitless. Worrying as that is, it is not the worst that we have heard. According to this missing-nin Jiku-sama is involved with this organization." Shikamaru couldn't help the twist to his lips when adding the honorific to that man's name but he could not afford to alienate Gaara through his own personal opinions.

Gaara nodded and also leaned his arms on the railing, "Continue."

"Well, when I first heard that Jiku-sama was involved I only assumed that he was trying to make some extra money, or gain some influence, through unorthodox channels but given what we know about the organization's army – added to the fact that this organization has indicated that the armies are in aid of attacking the shinobi villages – I think his dealings with them are of a more sinister nature." Shikamaru paused, unsure of how to articulate his fears without outright accusing the feudal lord of treason and sedition.

"You think that Jiku is trying to overthrow my rule," Gaara stated it for him, "and since one Feudal Lord is involved what's to say that the others aren't too. Thus there is a potential threat to Konoha as well."

Shikamaru nodded. Gaara's features had yet to reform into anything other than a serious expression and Shikamaru couldn't help but wonder if that boded well or ill for them.

Suddenly Gaara straightened up. "You're making very serious accusations here. And it seems that you're basing all of your assumptions on nothing more than the word of a missing-nin. Do you have any other proof?"

Reluctantly Shikamaru shook his head. This was the difficult part. How to explain that he trusted Neji to have told the truth? How to make the Kazekage trust his gut feeling? Because Shikamaru's gut feeling told him very eloquently that they were spot-on with their assumptions.

"Kazekage-sama. The missing-nin is trustworthy, and I believe that he has already given what information he has to the Hokage. Though the part about the feudal lords have only come to our attention a few hours ago."

"Why not approach your Hokage then?" Gaara asked coolly, but Shikamaru could feel the intent way his aquamarine gaze – so like his sister's – was fixed on his face.

Shikamaru frowned, "With all due respect to the Hokage, I felt that this concerned Suna more at the moment. We have no proof of anything but even less proof that Konoha is in any danger. And I thought that you would prefer to handle your own internal problems without Konoha's interference."

A puff of breath, almost a sigh, and Gaara turned to Shikamaru with a wry look in his eyes, "Nicely deflected," he said dryly. "Because I know that Naruto values your opinion – your intelligence – above all other shinobi and because I know that Tsunade-hime placed a high value on the advice from the Nara clan, I will investigate this matter. I thank you for bringing it to my attention."

Gaara turned to leave and Shikamaru couldn't help but slump slightly over his folded arms in relief. The Kazekage's voice suddenly sounded behind him.

"You have my gratitude for giving me, if nothing else, some leverage over an old enemy. But that does not mean that you have my blessing when it comes to my sister."

Shikamaru froze. How on earth had he known that? They were so careful … he whirled around to face Gaara but the doorway was empty.

* * *

Temari nodded absently as she listened to Jiku outlining their travel plans to the Hokage. Her attention was focused – subtly – on the doorway. What was happening out there? Had Shikamaru managed to convince Gaara of anything? She nearly jumped out of her skin when her brother suddenly reappeared but his expression gave nothing away and she sighed inwardly. She kept her gaze locked with Gaara's – knew that her eyes were begging for some sign – but Gaara only nodded vaguely.

She turned back to her husband and the Hokage before they noticed her abstraction and nearly jumped out of her skin again when something soft yet coarse brushed against her ankle. She glanced down and a frown of confusion marred her brow when she saw the thin tendril of sand. It nudged her ankle again and Temari suppressed the urge to glance at her brother. Instead, she heeded his silent request and excused herself from the men. The tendril remained next to her brushing against her skin periodically as she walked away and only once she was a safe distance away from Jiku did the sand leave her side. Temari glanced at Gaara in confusion but he was talking quietly to Kankurou – giving no indication that he was manipulating his sand beneath everyone's feet.

Her gaze flew back to the tendril that had guided her away and she wasn't even very surprised when Kankurou suddenly appeared at her shoulder. She could feel the tension radiating from him and surreptiously began to loosen her big fan from its restraints. She was still focused on her task – her brain working a mile a minute to try and figure out what was going on -when all hell broke loose.

Jiku shouted, his arms wind-milling, as he fought against the sand wound tightly around his ankles. People were jumping and screaming but Gaara advanced on the feudal lord, arms crossed and face expressionless.

"There is no sense in struggling, my lord," he told Jiku softly as he neared the other man's struggling figure.

Jiku raised his eyes to Gaara's, his face flushed with indignation, "What is the meaning of this, Gaara? Release me at once!"

Sudden rage distorted Gaara's normally placid features and Temari tried to suppress the shiver of fear that ran down her spine – no matter how far Gaara had come some habits were hard to break and her instinctive reaction to that expression on her brother's face was one of them.

"I don't think so, Jiku. Release you? So that you can plot against me further?" Gaara snarled the words and Jiku froze. His struggles ceased and when he raised his eyes again, they were glinting with malice, a sneer pulling at his lips.

"So, you finally caught on, did you?" he asked snidely.

"What are you planning?" Gaara asked, refusing to rise to the comment, his mask now firmly back in place.

In contrast Jiku's features seem to become even more distorted – rage flowing through every line of his body.

"You ninja – you're all the same. Thinking that your powers give you the right to lead, that you're a cut above the rest of the world." He slowly brought his hands together and formed a simple sequence of seals.

Temari's eyebrows nearly touched her hairline – what was Jiku planning? He couldn't use those seals …

The entire room seemed to gasp when chakra began to glow around the feudal lord's hands. Jiku smirked at Gaara – the only one who'd managed to hold on to his composure with this new revelation.

"Well, _Kazekage-sama,_ you're no longer a cut above me! You think you know what's best for the world – but it's no longer your opinion that counts. We feudal lords are tired of dancing to the Kages' tune – we're taking back that which is ours by right."

Jiku moved quickly, his hands slicing down toward the sand that bound his ankles and Temari and Kankurou both started forward when Gaara stumbled back a step, a look of disbelief on his face. His siblings' eyes followed his gaze when it became apparent that he was unharmed, to the thin line of sand that lay on the floor next to Jiku's feet.

Temari's gaze flew between Jiku and her brother. The chakra that had glowed on her husband's hands seemed to have severed the chakra flowing through Gaara's sand – and now the sand lay in a harmless pile on the floor. _What? How?_

The entire room stood frozen in shock and Jiku took advantage of their momentary paralysis.

"The world's about to change, Kazekage. Are you ready for a new age?"

And he threw himself at the window, only a couple of steps to his right.

The crash of glass breaking, the splintering of wood, seemed to jerk everyone from their shocked stupor but by the time Gaara, Temari and Kankurou had reached the window, Jiku was already only a speck in the distance. He moved much faster than any civilian Temari had ever encountered.

"How?" she managed to articulate the sound through her shock.

"Seems as if he was one of the successful experiments," Gaara muttered, mostly to himself. Then he drew himself up to his full height and turned to face Danzou.

The Hokage hadn't moved from his spot but Temari didn't like the avaricious glint in the old man's single visible eye.

"Hokage-sama," Gaara began, "I am informed that you are aware of an outlaw organization that uses a technique to transplant kekkei genkai into civilians. It is no longer Konoha's problem alone. As has been demonstrated here today, Suna's feudal lord has ties to this organization – has benefited from their techniques – and unless I'm much mistaken, it appears as if they are planning to overthrow the shinobi villages."

Gaara's pronouncement was met with total silence. Finally the Hokage seemed to gather himself.

"So it would appear, Kazekage-sama. I propose that we ally ourselves with our other friends of the five great shinobi nations and attack without delay."

Gaara shook his head, "I do not agree, Danzou-sama. We do not know where they are, we do not know their capabilities and they will have the advantage of being forewarned now that Jiku has escaped."

Danzou seemed to puff himself up with outrage, "Gaara, forgive me, but you are letting your youth dictate your actions. Offense is the best defense. And I have a source that can lead us straight to their hideout."

"War is imminent, Danzou. I'm not deluding myself on that score, but we will be better served by strengthening our defenses, letting them come to us – we have whole nations to consider and I will not plunge my people into senseless bloodshed when there's a way to protect them."

Danzou shook his head in disgust, "Very well, boy, then we reach a parting of the ways. I will do as I think best in Konoha and you must do as you see fit in Suna. But let all here bear witness to the fact that I tried to warn you!"

Gaara's mouth twisted but he kept his temper under control much to Temari's relief.

"So be it. The best of luck to Konoha."

Gaara turned and with no further word or gesture he swept through the room and out the door leaving Temari with no choice but to follow.

* * *

The soft knock at her door nearly had Tenten jumping out of her skin. A sleepless night spent agonizing over Neji, the past and her mistakes, did not allow for peace of mind and her nerves were on edge. She levered herself sluggishly off the couch, where she had been staring into space for hours now, and made her way to the front door. She barely had it open, didn't have time to process the shock of Neji standing on her doorstep, before he'd pushed his way inside, and closed the door behind him with a slight sigh.

For an interminable moment they stared at each other, hazel eyes clashing with pearlescent ones, and then Neji moved jerkily forward. Tenten froze in disbelief when his hand stroked gently over her cheek, sliding over her skin to bury in the fall of her hair over the nape of her neck, but she didn't resist – didn't protest – when Neji drew her toward him.

"I'm sorry," he murmured against her lips before his mouth slanted over hers.

Involuntarily her hands lifted, fisted in the material that covered his chest, and then Tenten was lost in his kiss. There was only the silkiness of his tongue as it wound sinuously around her own, the pressure of his lips on hers, his hand clenching in her hair, the other resting on her hip, pulling her tightly against him.

When they finally broke apart for air, and Tenten slowly opened her eyes, she found Neji staring intently at her.

"I've made many mistakes. But if you will allow me to, then I'll try to make up for the pain I've caused you."

Tenten frowned slightly, trying to make sense of his words through the blood pounding through her veins.

"I-I don't understand," she finally managed, licking her lips nervously. He wasn't angry about her betrayal?

"I know about Danzou," he said simply, and Tenten froze.

"How? I never meant for you to-"

"It doesn't matter," Neji interrupted, "none of it does."

And then his mouth was on hers again and Tenten forgot to think. Forgot to _want _to. She wound her arms around his neck, standing on tip-toes to press as close to him as she could. For now, he was here, he wanted her and she wasn't going to argue with that.

Slowly Neji began to back her toward the bedroom, never lifting his mouth from hers, his hands roaming all over her body in sensuous sweeps. Tenten shivered in reaction, her hands snaking around his waist to slide up under the soft fabric of his shirt. Her fingernails raked a path down his spine and Neji growled into her mouth, his hands sliding over her hips, cupping the soft mounds of her backside as he lifted her swiftly into his arms. She wound her legs around him, a gasping moan escaping when he transferred his mouth to her neck, sucking softly on a pulse point.

They reached the bedroom and Tenten barely had time to process the fact of Neji putting her down before he was hovering over her again, his mouth tracing lines of fire over her skin. It was too much but it wasn't nearly enough and Tenten writhed under his touch, silently begging him for more. She could feel him smirking against her skin, and suddenly she realized that Neji was right.

None of it mattered anymore. Not the past, not what she'd done, nothing mattered except this feeling between them. They'd never needed anyone else and they never would. Tenten fisted her hands in his hair, yanking his head up from his slow exploration of her stomach, and drew his mouth back to hers.

"I'm sorry too," she whispered against his mouth, her tongue licking back and forth across his lower lip. His eyes blazed into hers and Tenten shuddered in anticipation.

"It's behind us," he finally answered.

Tenten smiled up at him, and suddenly pushed him over onto his back, straddling him, as she ran her hands up and down his chest under his shirt. Watching him intently she lowered herself slowly before grinding their hips together and a satisfied smirk pulled at her lips when Neji threw his head back against the pillow, his hands tightening around her hips, holding her in place, coaxing her hips to move.

She leaned over to press another urgent kiss against his lips and he took back control, flipping her smoothly onto her back. Time became irrelevant and it seemed to Tenten as if their clothes melted away by magic, one kiss flowing smoothly into the next as hungry hands explored straining bodies.

Finally, just when she was sure she couldn't stand another second without him inside of her, his hips pushed forward and their bodies melded into one. And, in that second of desperate bliss, Tenten vowed silently that nothing would ever part them again.

* * *

Temari fought against the tears as she took a last look around her rented room, to make sure that she'd forgotten nothing. They'd swept from the Hokage's tower and Gaara had ordered them all to meet at the gates in ten minutes. She barely had time to gather her belongings before she was due there but silently she acknowledged that maybe it was better this way. She didn't think she'd be able to hold on to her composure if she had to tell Shikamaru goodbye. This time probably for good. Death was looming and the mere idea that she'd never see his crooked smile again, never feel the touch of his hands, was enough to make her want to curl up into a little ball and die. But that was not her way. She was not weak. Never had been and she wouldn't allow emotions to drive her to weakness now.

She wiped quickly at her eyes and turned to leave, only to gasp and press a hand to her heart when she came face to face with her brothers, lined up in her doorway.

"You nearly gave me a heart attack," she gasped as she sank down onto her bed, hand still pressed firmly over her heart as she fought to calm the frantic beating.

She stared up at her siblings questioningly, wondering what had brought them here and why Kankurou was giving her a twisted sort of smile. They entered the room and Gaara closed the door softly behind him before turning to face her with an inscrutable gaze.

"You are free now," he said finally and Temari frowned in confusion.

"From Jiku. Gaara dissolved the marriage on grounds of his traitorous actions. Or, at least, he will as soon as we're back in Suna but you can consider it done," Kankurou elaborated awkwardly.

Temari grimaced. She'd completely forgotten about that – truth be told she'd never really considered herself married to begin with. She started in shock, jerked from her thoughts when Gaara lowered himself to sit next to her and placed an awkward hand on her shoulder.

"I never thanked you for what you did for me. By marrying him," he said softly, keeping his gaze on the floor.

Tears welled up again and Temari shook her head impatiently, "No need to thank me." She tried to strive for her usual brisk tone but failed miserably and cleared her throat.

"We should get going," she muttered, wiping another impatient hand across her eyes as she stood. To her surprise neither of her brothers made any move to follow her lead. She shook her head in confusion again. Theirs was not a sentimental family, they were just as awkward as she was at the moment, and she couldn't understand why they weren't standing and changing the topic to a more mundane one in relief.

"Temari," Gaara began slowly, "I never thanked you but now I have the chance to make that right." He raised his eyes to hers, "Do you love him?" he asked slowly.

It never occurred to Temari to pretend ignorance – she knew Gaara was referring to Shikamaru. She shrugged helplessly, "I do."

"Then I release you from your obligations to Suna. You don't have to leave with us today. You can stay." Gaara watched her closely and Temari was aware of her eyes widening, as the instinctive protest rose to her lips.

"What? I-I can't do that! Suna is my home – a part of me," she protested.

A slight smile pulled at Gaara's lips, "And it will always be your home. I'm not banishing you, Temari. But I know that your heart is here, with Shikamaru. So stay. Who knows what the future will bring, and there has been enough unhappiness in this family of late."

The tears – suppressed successfully until now – wouldn't be suppressed any longer but for once Temari did not feel shame as the liquid spilled down her cheeks.

* * *

The very darkest part of the night had fallen but Neji was still awake, stroking his fingers softly down Tenten's arm as he watched her sleeping. A slow smile pulled at his lips and, for now, he allowed the contentment to spread through him. Tomorrow was soon enough to start worrying about what the future might bring.

A soft tap at the front door pulled his attention away from the sleeping girl and he rose regretfully, grabbing clothes on his way, before the unannounced and uninvited visitor could wake her. If the dark circles under her eyes were anything to go by she hadn't been sleeping well.

At the door, Neji paused in the act of pulling his shirt over his head and activated his Byakugan. Recognizing Shikamaru's chakra signature, he sighed as he opened the door, cursing the fact that the real world was catching up to him so quickly, He wasn't ready to face it yet.

To his surprise Shikamaru responded to his curt nod with a small smile, and held out a scroll for the Hyuuga to take.

"Your pardon – and your reinstatement," he said softly, "All able-bodied shinobi to gather in the square before the Hokage's tower at dawn tomorrow. We're going to war." The last sentence was said with a grimace and Neji raised his eyes questioningly to Shikamaru's.

"They believed you," he muttered, taking the scroll and opening the door to admit the other to the small apartment.

Shikamaru held up a hand and shook his head, "No, thanks, I've got to go. I figured you'd be here so I thought your official pardon might come in handy when you have to venture outside again," he smiled briefly, without humor before continuing, "yes, Gaara believed me. But the Hokage and the Kazekage's ways of dealing with the imminent threat differ vastly and the Suna contingent has already departed. The Hokage has already sent messages to the other shinobi nations – you know how Danzou is, he'll have his war at all costs. He wants to address everyone tomorrow, hence the summons."

Neji closed his eyes briefly, regret for the small amount of time he had left with Tenten flooding through him, and then he nodded.

"We'll be there."

* * *

Dawn was very near to painting the sky with the first brush of rosy color when Shikamaru finally let himself into his apartment with an exhausted groan. For a moment he paused, leaning against the closed door and allowed the pain to pull his features into a grimace.

She'd left without even saying goodbye.

But then, how could he have expected her to do anything else? No doubt she'd had orders to leave Konoha as quickly as possible. Shikamaru sighed and pushed away from the door. He had about an hour of sleep, if he was lucky, before he had to be present for the Hokage addressing the troops. The bitter thoughts pulled the corners of his mouth up with distaste and he couldn't help but think that the rest of the village wasn't going to take the Hokage's orders any better than he or Neji had. The orders were far removed from anything the Third or the Fifth would ever have contemplated … but … Danzou, no matter how badly suited for the position, was Hokage, and the oaths Shikamaru had taken held him bound in place. He would follow his orders, he didn't have to like them.

He reached his bedroom but instead of flopping down onto the bed as he'd planned he froze in the door way. Temari glanced up from the scroll she'd been reading and fixed him with a pouting glance.

"Took you long enough. Where were you all night?"

Through the shock that held his body immobile and his voice locked in his throat, Shikamaru managed a non-committal grunt. Temari rolled her eyes at him.

"You didn't think I'd let you fight alone, did you? When you can barely take care of yourself in a battle?"

A smile broke through the confusion on Shikamaru's features and he walked forward to flop down onto the bed next to her, pulling her into his arms in the process. She shrieked softly and giggled when his hands tickled across her ribs, the mischievous light fading from her eyes.

"Troublesome woman," Shikamaru muttered, burying his face in the curve of her neck, enjoying the feel of her body relaxing into his.

"Crybaby," she returned softly, running her fingers over his hair, laughter apparent in her voice.

Shikamaru sighed and rolled over, taking her with him, relishing the warmth of her body as she snuggled closer, and closed his eyes. She was here. How he didn't know but he had his suspicions – and when he had to wake up in an hour's time would be quick enough to ask her all the questions in the world.

* * *

The pale fingers of sunlight broke through the light cover of clouds, as Neji and Tenten made their way to the square, hand in hand. After Shikamaru had left Neji had woken her regretfully to relay all he knew, and they were both prepared. Little as they liked it, they had an obligation to their village to follow the Hokage's orders.

They reached the square and Neji wasn't even very surprised to see Shikamaru standing at the edge of the crowd, Temari by his side. But Tenten hissed in surprise and tugged at his hand, inclining her head toward the couple. He nodded slowly and nearly groaned out loud when Tenten's searching gaze turned into a calculating one – a gaze that said he would tell her everything he knew later. But then they'd reached their friends and all four shared a nodded greeting before turning to face the platform where Danzou stood – surrounded by his Root ANBU, as always, and flanked by the council of elders.

Neji glanced through the crowd, noting the familiar faces of people he'd once called his friends and firmly ignored the drivel Danzou was spouting: 'for the glory of Konoha' and 'protecting that which is ours' seemed to feature heavily. But on the last score at least he had to agree with the Hokage. He would protect Tenten with every ounce of strength he possessed, and when his eyes met hers – shining with a fervent, burning light – he knew that she felt the same.

After all the years, after all the pain and lies, they were no different. It was still the same as it had been in their genin days when they'd banded together to save themselves from the insanity that was Gai and Lee – they would face the world together. Destiny could be overcome – if you had the right person beside you.

Tenten squeezed his hand tightly and Neji firmly forced the thoughts of war and death, destiny and pain, from his mind to send her a small smile, filled with reassurance. Somehow they would be alright – he could feel it in his bones.

The End.

* * *

_**A/N: Finally! I can't believe I actually finished it ^^ I hope that you enjoyed the story (btw, I did plan on an open ending from the beginning but I doubt I'll do a sequel) and thank you so much to everyone who read/reviewed/alerted/favorited throughout. Your patience knows no bounds and I really appreciate that you stuck with me despite the long time it took to finally get this one done! Remember, done or not, reviews are my crack ^^**_

_**~Nokito**_


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